Acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis due to the use of valproic acid in a child.

Acute pancreatitis is rarely seen in children, and it is often drug induced. Valproic acid (VPA) is one of the most widely used anticonvulsants for children all over the world. We present 11-year-old boy developing pancreatitis after 6 months of therapy with VPA. The symptoms of pancreatitis subsided within 2 weeks after discontinuation of VPA. It seems that the prognosis of VPA-associated acute pancreatitis depends on early diagnosis, timely withdrawal of the offending agent and the treatment.