The incidence rate of acute pancreatitis (AP) has been reported as having increased during recent decades and associated mortality lies around 10%. This study was undertaken to establish the current AP hospitalization and mortality rates in Veneto Region. A retrospective study of all cases of acute pancreatitis admitted in hospital between 2000 and 2007 was carried out in all Veneto population. Data concerning patients discharged with a diagnosis of acute pancreatitis (ICD 9-CM code: 577.0) were obtained from the Regional data warehouse and analysed on a computer database. Altogether 11,685 discharges for AP were recorded; median age of the patients was 61.6 +/- 20.3 years. The mean annual AP hospitalization rate was 30.6 per 100,000 and in-hospital annual mortality rate (death from all causes) was 1.1 per 100,000 population. Hospitalization and mortality rates were larger in older and increased sharply with age. Hospital admissions for AP rose from 29.3 in 2000 to 32.2 per 100,000 population in 2007 without significative variations in mortality rate probably due to the increase of effectiveness and quality of care. The AP hospitalization rate in Veneto population is comparable to what has been found elsewhere in Italy and AP remains an increasing disease with high mortality.