​Cigarette smokers may be highly vulnerable to suffer from both acute and chronic pancreatitis.

The aim of this research work was to investigate the connection between cigarette smoking and pancreatitis risk by conducting a meta-analysis of epidemiological studies. Twenty-two studies that explored the association between smoking and pancreatitis were included in this meta-analysis.

Researchers found an increased risk of acute and chronic pancreatitis among former and current cigarette smokers. This results of this study show that cigarette smoking may be a factor that accelerates the development of both acute and chronic pancreatitis.