Pathomorphology of regional and mesenteric lymph nodes in acute and chronic alcoholic pancreatitis: a comparative autopsy study
Received: 2026-02-27
Published: 2026-04-30
Abstract
Aim. To characterise and compare the pathomorphological changes of peripancreatic (regional) and mesenteric lymph nodes in acute and chronic alcoholic pancreatitis, and to define the structural correlates of their impaired immunopoietic and barrier–filtration functions.
Materials and methods. Peripancreatic and mesenteric lymph nodes obtained at autopsy from decedents with a clinically and anamnestically confirmed history of chronic alcohol misuse were examined. Sections were stained with haematoxylin–eosin, van Gieson and alcian blue, and assessed semi-quantitatively across four morphofunctional compartments (capsule and sinuses, cortex, paracortex, medulla).
Results. Acute forms were dominated by massive interstitial oedema involving all compartments, subcapsular and intermediate sinus dilatation, capsular disorganisation with fibre destruction, and sequestration of cortical lymphoid follicles. Chronic forms showed parenchymal atrophy with reciprocal proliferation and sclerosis of stromal–vascular structures, capsular thickening, medullary neoangiogenesis, sinus histiocytosis with plasmacytic and fibroblastic accumulation, and reticulosclerosis. In both groups paracortical postcapillary venules lost their high-endothelial phenotype and converted to thin-walled congested veins without transmural lymphocyte migration, and the reticular cell–lymphocyte symbiosis was disrupted.
Conclusion. Alcoholic pancreatitis induces a stage-dependent, non-infectious lymphadenopathy that progresses from oedematous–destructive to atrophic–sclerotic remodelling, providing a structural basis for the impaired regional immune response and lymphatic drainage that accompany the disease.
Keywords
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