Objective To summarize current research advances of mechanism and treatment of pancreatic endocrine and exocrine insufficiency in chronic pancreatitis. Method The related literatures about the research progress of the pancreatic endocrine and exocrine insufficiency in the chronic pancreatitis in recent years were retrieved and reviewed. Results In recent years, it had many new studies and discoveries on the pancreatic endocrine and exocrine insufficiency in the chronic pancreatitis. The mechanism of the pancreatic exocrine dysfunction was mainly due to the decrease of the pancreatin secretion in the patients with chronic pancreatitis. The mechanism of the pancreatic endocrine insufficiency was mainly due to the damage of the pancreatic exocrine gland and islet tissue in the chronic pancreas, which leaded to the destruction of the pancreatic endocrine cells, the other endocrine cells, and the disturbance of the intestine-islet axis, followed by the disorder of the various hormones (insulin, glucagon, pancreatic polypeptide, etc.), and eventually manifested the glucose tolerance or dominant diabetes. Conclusions At present, although there is a certain degree understanding for pancreatic endocrine and exocrine insufficiency in chronic pancreatitis, there are no breakthroughs in its mechanism and treatment, and effect is lack of large sample and multicenter clinical control study. Exploring more optimized detection methods and establishing a perfect treatment system is goal of future development and research.