Table 1.

Criteria for grading the severity of acute pancreatitis in Japan[4]

Prognostic factors	Clinical signs	Laboratory data
Prognostic factor I (2 points for each positive factor)	Shock	BE ≤ -3 mmol/L
	Respiratory failure	Ht ≤ 30% (after hydration)
	Mental disturbance	BUN ≥ 40 mg/dL or creatinine ≥ 2.0 mg/dL
	Severe infection
	Hemorrhagic diathesis
Prognostic factor II (1 points for each positive factor)		PaO2 ≤ 60 mmHg (room air)
		FBS ≥ 200 mg/dL
		Total protein ≤ 60 g/L
		LDH ≥ 700 IU/L
		Ca ≤ 7.5 mg/dL
		Prothrombin time ≥ 15 s
		Platelet count ≤ 1 × 105/mm3
		CT grade IV or V
Prognostic factor III	SIRS score ≥ 3 (2 points)
	Age ≥ 70 yr (1 point)

BE: Base excess; Ht: Hematocrit; BUN: Blood urea nitrogen; FBS: Fasting blood sugar; LDH: Lactate dehydrogenase; SIRS: Systemic inflammatory response syndrome. CT grade IV or V: Presence of diffuse and uneven density in the pancreatic parenchyma or the presence of inflammatory changes extending beyond the border of the pancreas. Severity score: Sum of the points for the positive prognostic factors is defined as the severity score. Standardized criteria: Severe, presence of more than one prognostic factor I, and/or the presence of more than two prognostic factor II (severity score ≥ 2 points); Moderate, presence of one prognostic factor II (severity score = 1 point); Mild, acute pancreatitis without prognostic factor I or II (severity = 0 point).