Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) is now a widely accepted therapy for
treating benign and malignant diseases of the pancreatobiliary tree. Acute pancreatitis
represents the most common and feared complication following ERCP. The reported incidence of
this complication is from 1% to 40% according to the presence of high-risk factors for this
complication or the presence dysfunction in the sphincter of Oddi (SOD). In most prospective
series, the incidence has ranged between 3.5% and 20% for nonselected and high-risk patients,
respectively. Independent risk factors for post-ERCP pancreatitis are either patient- or
procedure-related.