Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency
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- Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) is a syndrome caused by insufficient synthesis and secretion of digestive enzymes by the exocrine portion of the pancreas
- Leading to insufficient activity of digestive enzymes in the lumen of the small intestine
- Pancreas has considerable functional reserve, large proportion needs to be non-functional to show signs of EPI
- Most common in dog - usually associated with pancreatic atrophy or chronic pancreatitis
- Occurs occasionally in other species, esp. calves with pancreatic hypoplasia and in cats
- Clinical signs
- Steatorrhoea
- Diarrhoea
- Weight loss
- Increased appetite
- In contrast, horses with very little pancreatic tissue develop hypoinsulinism but rarely EPI