Anatomia Cirúrgica da REGIÃO INGUINAL
A hérnia inguinal é uma condição comum que ocorre quando um órgão abdominal protraí através de uma fraqueza na parede abdominal na região abdominal. O orifício miopectineal é a principal área de fraqueza na parede abdominal onde a hérnia inguinal pode se desenvolver. O conhecimento da anatomia da parede abdominal é importante para entender a patofisiologia da hérnia inguinal e para ajudar no diagnóstico e tratamento dessa condição médica comum.
GASTROSTOMY: INDICATIONS, TECHNICAL DETAILS AND POSTOPERATIVE CARE.
Ozimo Pereira Gama Filho
Adjunct Professor at the Federal University of Maranhão
No conflict of interest
- INTRODUCTION
- HISTORICAL ASPECTS
- ANATOMICAL FUNDAMENTALS
- INDICATIONS
- TYPES & TECHNIQUES
- ADVERSE EVENTS
- CUSTO RATIO x EFFECTIVENESS
- CONCLUSIONS
SUMMARY
In the last decade, the use of gastrostomies has been widely indicated as the preferred form of access to the gastrointestinal tract for feeding in chronic conditions and during recovery from acute conditions such as trauma. Together with this increase in indications, new techniques have been developed that have made gastrostomies simpler and less risky. From the classical technique of Stamm performed by laparotomy, two new alternatives that do not require laparotomy emerged: percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) and fluoroscopy gastrostomy. Its main benefit is to avoid a laparotomy, with less associated postoperative pain and earlier return of gastrointestinal function. Although peg is currently widely accepted as the insertion technique of choice due to its simplicity and efficacy, there are patients who are not candidates for an endoscopic approach. In this article we seek to clarify the indications, technical aspects and perioperative care of patients undergoing gastrostomy.
Keywords: Surgical Procedures; Ostomies; Gastrostomy.
Area of Knowledge: General Surgery
- INTRODUCTION
The main indication for enteral or parenteral feeding in the perioperative period is the provision of nutritional support to supply the metabolism of patients with inadequate oral intake. Enteral feeding is the preferred method in relation to parenteral feeding in patients with gastrointestinal dysfunction in the perioperative period due to the inherent risks associated with parenteral nutritional support, such as: infectious complications of the access routes, higher operational cost, and the inability to parenteral nutrition to provide adequate enteral stimulation and subsequent involvement of the intestinal defense barrier [1,2]. In addition, enteral feeding may decrease the risk of bacterial translocation and corresponding bacteremia [3]. Gastric nutritional support is the most common type used. Access to insert the gastrostomy probe can be achieved using endoscopy, interventional radiologia, or surgical techniques (open or laparoscopic). However, since its description in the 1980s [4], percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) is currently considered the method of choice for medium and long-term enteral support.
1.1 Objective: This article reviews the current knowledge about GOSTROSTOMIA in the medical literature, emphasizing the technical and perioperative aspects.
- HISTORICAL ASPECTS
In 876, Verneoil [5] successfully made the first gastrostomy in humans. Since then, several technical modifications have been suggested, such as witzel’s technique in 1891, in which a subseroso tunnel is made on the probe [6]. Stamm, in 1894 [7], described one of the most performed techniques today and in the history of surgical gastrostomy, which consists in the making of suture in a pouch to invaginate the probe inserted into the stomach [8]. In 1980, percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy was described by Gauderer et al. [4] , which transformed the technique of making gastrostomy.
- ANATOMICAL FUNDAMENTALS
The stomach is a J-shaped dilated cylindrical organ that rests in the left epigastric and hypochodrial region of the abdomen at the level of the first lumbar vertebra. It is previously limited by the left hemidiaphragm, the left lobe of the liver and a triangular portion of the anterior abdominal wall. Subsequently, the pancreas, left kidney and adrenal delimit the stomach. The spleen is posterolaterally and the transverse colon is inferior. It is fixed at two points of continuity: gastroesophageal, superiorly and the duodenal, retroperitoneally. Its ligament attachments also help you in fixation to adjacent organs: gastrophemic (diaphragm), hepatogastric or minor omentum (liver), gastrosplenic or gastrolienal (spleen), and gastrocholic or omentum major (transverse colon). The anatomical regions of the stomach can be distinguished as this: começa superiorly in the continuity of the abdominal part of the esophagus and dthe gastroesophageal junction, the cardiac part of the stomach. Soon below this portion, lies the bottom of the stomach that expands to the left extending above thegastroesophageal junction, forming an acute angle with the distal esophagus known as cardiac notches. The body s andextends as a distensible reservoir and forms a medial edge called the smallest curvature to the right and a side edge called the largest curvature on the left. The gastric den of the stomach is not anatomically distinguishable, but it is estimated to be a region of the angular isis along the distal minor curvature to a point along a lower line to the distal major curvature. It thus ends bymouthing r into the pyloric canal limited by the pyloric sphincter, a palpable thickened ring of muscle that is continuous with the first part of the duodenum.
- INDICATIONS
Gastrostomy is used in the following situations:
- Gastric decompression: can be obtained by means of temporary gastrostomy, occasionally recommended, as a complement to large abdominal operations for which gastric stems, prolonged “adynamic ileus” and digestive fistulas are foreshadowed.
- Nutritional Support: b.1 Temporary; indicated when access to the digestive tract is temporarily impaired for recovery and maintenance of nutritional status (E.g. CEsophageal EC); b.2 Definitive; as palliative therapy in patients with unresectable malignant neoplasia of the head and neck, as wellas n degenerative neurological diseases that lead to irreversible disorders of deglutition.
However, the decision to perform a gastrostomy, as well as its route (surgical, radiological or endoscopic) should be individualizedaccording to the needs, diagnosis, life expectancy of the patient and the available hospital logistics. The objective is not only to optimize perioperative recovery, to improve survival and nutritional status of the patient, but also to promote quality of life, which is not necessarily correlated with nutritional improvement only [9]. Therefore, the appropriate indication, like any other surgical intervention, must be clearly establishedand informed before it is performed. Some of the absolute contraindications of gastrostomy are summarized in Table 1. In addition to absolute contraindication conditions, other situations such as the presence of non-obstructive oromyctological oresophageal malignancy, hepatomegaly, splenomegaly, peritoneal dialysis, portal hypertension with gastric varicose veins, and a history of partial gastrectomy are also considered relative contraindications.
| ABSOLUTE CONTRA – INDICATIONS |
| Coagulopatia Severa (INR > 5, Plaquetas < 50.000 e TPT > 50s) |
| Hemodynamic Instability |
| Septic Shock |
| Refractory Ascites |
| Peritonitis |
| Dermatological infection in the upper abdomen |
| Carcinomatose Peritoneal |
| Interposition of organs that prevent gastric access |
| History of Total Gastrectomy |
| Stenosis or Pyloric Obstruction |
| Severe gastroparesis, in cases of indication for nutritional support |
| Absence of Informed Consent |
- TYPES & TECHNIQUES
Currently there are three techniques for performing gastrostomy: radiological, through percutaneous gastrostomy by fluoroscopy, percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) and surgical gastrostomy. Due to the didactic characteristics of this material, we will focus on endoscopic and surgical gastrostomy , which becomes the main option in the following situations: 1) when the patient will already undergo a laparotomy due to some abdominal condition ; 2) impossibility of performing gastroscopy to perform gastrostomy endoscopic percutaneous (PEG) ; 3) in case of peg technical failure; 4) unavailability of resources for the preparation of PEG or percutaneous gastrostomy by fluoroscopy.
- ENDOSCOPIC PERCUTANEOUS GASTROSTOMY
The informed consent form must be obtained from patients or their legal representatives. Patients should fast for a minimum of 8 hours and receive prophylactic antibiotics one hour before proceeding and intravenous administration of 1-2 g of cefazolin is recommended. The technique introduced by Gauderer et al [4] is the most used technique to insert the PEG gastrostomy probe. In this method, a guide wire is used, inserted in the distal gastric chamber through a needle puncture n to the anterior abdominal wall. This guide wire is then seized endoscopically with a handle and then removed through the esophagus and mouth. Subsequently, the guide wire is fixed to the end of the gastrostomy probe and then pulled from the mouth to the esophagus, stomach and then out to the abdominal wall, where it will be fixed.
- SURGICAL GASTROSTOMY
Surgical gastrostomy can be performed in two ways: 1) via laparotomy – the predominant form; and 2) laparoscopic approach. The preparations are the same as the endoscopic pathway.
5.2.1. GASTROSTOMIA At STAMM
After adequate asepsis and antisepsis, with the patient under anesthesia and in horizontal dorsal decubitus, the technical steps are as follows: 1. Median laparotomy (supraumbilical median incision); 2. Identification of the gastric body; 3. Stomach hold with Babcock tweezers (to evaluate the approach of the stomach to the peritoneum); 4. Suture in pouch (circular area of 2cm) – atraumatic absorbable thread; 5. Section of the stomach wall (0.5cm) – (incision with scalpel or Electrocautery in the center of the suture, of sufficient size, for the placement of a probe with 20 to 26 French); 6. Placement of the Gastrostomy probe in the extension of 5-6 cm, followed by suture closure in a pouch); 7. Tie the suture threads in a pouch around the probe; 8. Apply a second suture in a pouch 1cm above the first (seromuscular stitches); 9. Externalization of the probe by counter opening on the left flank; 10. Fix the stomach wall to the abdominal wall in 4 cardinal points (external ration with the two Kocher tweezers used for grip of the alba line and against traction by means of the index fingers of the wall of the left hipochondrio to approach the parietal peritoneum of the gastric wall); 11. Fixation of the probe to the skin (point with nonabsorbable wire); 12. Closure of the abdominal wall (synthesis of the wall with approximation of the alba thread by continuous suture with monofilament thread 1-0 or 2-0 and of the skin with separate points of nylon 3-0); 13. Dressing.
5.2.1 GASTROSTOMIA EM WITZEL
The initial technical steps from gastrostomy to Witzel are like those of gastrostomy to Stamm, including fixation of the probe to the stomach by a pouch suture. Then, the probe is placed on the gastric wall and a tunnel of 8-10 cm is made by seromuscular suture (continuous or with separate points of absorbable or nonabsorbable thread) covering it and externalization is performed by counteropening.
- ADVERSE EVENTS
According to the literature, the rate of complications for different procedures varies due to the heterogeneity of the samples evaluated. For surgical gastrostomy, the reported complication rates are between 1% and 35%, while for percutaneous radiological gastrostomy it is 3% to 11%, and for percutaneous endoscopic, 17%–32%, the main related adverse event is surgical site infection [10, 11]. Although considered a basic procedure, gastrostomy is associated with an extensive list of related technical complications, care and use of the probe. Serious problems related to the technique include separation of the stomach from the abdominal wall (leading to peritonitis), separation of wounds, hemorrhage, infection, lesion of the posterior gastric wall or other organs, and placement of the tube in an inappropriate place of gastric position. Separation of the stomach from the abdominal wall usually occurs due to inadvertent and premature displacement of the tube, particularly with balloon-like devices, or a rupture during a catheter change. It requires immediate attention, being treated with laparotomy, although in selected cases laparoscopic correction is possible. Most complications can be avoided with the careful choice of the type of procedure, from the appropriate ostomy device, considering it an important intervention and using meticulous technique with the proper approximation of the stomach to the abdominal wall and outflow of the probe through a counter-incision (in conventional procedures), thus avoiding probes in the midline or awfully close to the costal edge.
- COST VS. EFFECTIVENESS
A recent study [12] compared the cost associated with the different gastrostomy techniques, and the results of the evaluation showed variable the benefits of each of the individual percutaneous procedures, indicating that surgical gastrostomy was the onerous mais of the three modalities due to higher costs, complications, and recovery time, as well as the endoscopic technique presenting the cost effectiveness ratio.
- CONCLUSIONS
Despite the technique employed, the decision to performa gastrostomy is not based only on the patient’s survival expectancy, because the adequate indication provides a better quality of life even when the survival of the patient after the procedure is severely limited. Therefore, understanding of techniques, indications, complication rates is essential to guide the surgical team in the scope of multidisciplinary care, as well as the education of patients and their caregivers is vital to ensure the correct maintenance of the devices, thus ensuring adequate nutritional intake of the patient and minimizes complication rates.
References
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2 Deitch EA, Ma WJ, Ma L, Berg RD, Specian RD. Protein malnutrition predisposes to inflammation-induced intestinal origin septic states. Ann Surg, 1990; 211: 560-567; discussion 560-567 [PMID: 2111125]
3 Deitch EA, Winterton J, Li M, Berg R. The intestine as a portal of entry to bacteremia. Role of protein malnutrition. Ann Surg 1987; 205: 681-692 [PMID: 3592811]
4 Gauderer MW, Ponsky JL, Izant RJ. Gastrostomia sem laparotomy: percutaneous endoscopic technique. J Pediatrician Surg, 1980; 15: 872-875 [PMID: 6780678]
5 Anselmo CB, Tercioti Júnior V, Lopes LR, Coelho Neto JS, Andreollo NA. Surgical gastrostomy: current indications and complications in patients of a university hospital. Rev Col Bras Cir. [Internet journal] 2013;40(6). Available in URL: http://www.scielo.br/rcbc
6 Witzel O. For gastric fistula technique. Chir Zbl. 1891;18:601-4.
7 Stamm M. Gastrostomy: a new method. Med News. 1894;65:324.
8 JP grant. Comparison of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy com gastrostomia strain. Ann Surg. 1988;207(5):598-603
9 Bannerman E, Pendlebury J, Phillips F, Ghosh S. Cross-sectional and longitudinal study of health-related quality of life after percutaneous gastrostomy. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol 2000; 12: 1101-1109 [PMID: 11057455]
10 Möller P, Lindberg CG, Zilling T. Gastrostomy by various techniques: evaluation of indications, outcome and complications. Scand J Gastroenterol. 1999;34(10):1050-4.
11 Clarke E, Pitts N, Latchford A, Lewis S. A major prospective audit of morbidity and mortality associated with food gastrostomies in the community. Clin Nutr. 2017 Apr;36(2):485-490. DOI: 10.1016/j.clnu.2016.01.008. EPub 2016 January 21. PMID: 26874913.
12 Wollman B, D’Agostino HB, Walus-Wigle JR, Easter DW, Beale A (1995) Radiological, endoscopic and surgical gastrostomy: an institutional evaluation and meta-analysis of the literature. Radiology 197: 699–704.
Gallstone Ileus
INTRODUCTION
Gallstone ileus is a misnomer: this condition is not a physiologic ileus at all, but a mechanical obstruction of the intestinal lumen (most commonly the small bowel) by a large gallstone that has passed through a cholecystoenteric fistula. Cholecystoenteric fistulae may occur from the gallbladder to the adjacent luminal viscera-duodenum (most common), stomach, or colon. Gallstone obstruction of the stomach at the pylorus is known as Bouveret’s syndrome. Cholecystocolic fistula is less common. Colonic obstruction in this situation typically occurs at the sigmoid colon. Most common is cholecystoduodenal fistula, with a large (usually >2 cm) gallstone passing through the small bowel and becoming lodged in the terminal ileum. Cholecystoenteric fistula is felt to be caused by a combination of pressure, necrosis, and inflammation with chronic longstanding gallstone disease. Up to 25% of patients who develop gallstone ileus will harbor multiple stones in the alimentary tract; therefore, a close inspection of the entire intestine is important at the time of operation.
CLINICAL PRESENTATION
Over the past few years, however, the incidence of gallstone ileus has been shown to be greater than previously thought. Several recent large population-based series have found that gallstone ileus accounts for approximately 0.1% of all small bowel obstructions. The disease usually affects women (70%) and those in the seventh or eighth decade of life. Most patients present with bloating, crampy abdominal pain, and vomiting, symptoms typical of mechanical small bowel obstruction. A careful history may reveal earlier episodic colicky right upper quadrant abdominal pain consistent with gallstone disease. The classic finding on plain abdominal radiograph is that of Rigler’s triad (pneumobilia, dilated small bowel loops with air-fluid levels, and a large, calcified gallstone in the lumen of the small bowel). Currently, computed tomography (CT) is used ubiquitously. CT has 99% accuracy for diagnosing gallstone ileus. Typical CT findings include pneumobilia, dilated loops of small bowel with air-fluid levels consistent with small bowel obstruction, and transition point with the ectopic stone always visible radiologically.
MANAGEMENT
Operation is required for all patients with gallstone ileus, as spontaneous passage of these large stones is rare once the patient has become symptomatic. It is crucial to optimize the patient physiologically as much as possible in this semi urgent situation, with the understanding that most gallstone ileus patients are elderly and commonly have numerous medical comorbidities. Two contemporary series of registry data have expanded our understanding of gallstone ileus. This condition was once thought to be relatively rare; however, the National Inpatient Sample study identified 3268 gallstone ileus patients, which accounts for approximately 0.1% of all patients admitted to the hospital with mechanical small bowel obstruction during this time period. In this series, overall hospital mortality was substantial at 6.7%. Mortality was significantly higher in patients who underwent cholecystectomy and closure of the biliary fistula compared to those who simply had small bowel obstruction addressed by cholecystolithotomy. Overall, 77% of the 3268 patients had small bowel obstruction pathology treated and the remaining 23% had biliary fistula closed and cholecystectomy at the same operation. An interesting finding was the substantial incidence of postoperative renal insufficiency, or approximately 30% in the entire group of patients. The latter finding highlights the need for preoperative resuscitation and close attention to postoperative fluid management. The surgeon must consider carefully feasibility of same operation intervention to repair biliary pathology: It is safe to defer biliary operation to a later date with a second staged operation. When this strategy of two stage operation is selected, surgeons should consider and counsel their patient regarding the substantial incidence of recurrent biliary symptoms.
Tratamento Cirúrgico da ACALASIA ESOFÁGICA
A acalasia, definida como a falha ou relaxamento incompleto do esfíncter esofágico inferior (EEI), acompanhada de aperistalse do corpo esofágico na ausência de obstrução mecânica, é o tipo mais comum de distúrbio da motilidade esofágica. Tem uma incidência de 1 em 100.000 pessoas, com uma prevalência de 10 em 100.000. Não há diferença na prevalência de gênero entre as idades de 30 e 60 anos. A causa primária da acalasia ainda é indeterminada, mas acredita-se que surja da degeneração das células ganglionares inibitórias no plexo miontérico do EEI e corpo esofágico. Fatores associados a um risco aumentado de acalasia incluem distúrbios virais/neurodegenerativos, síndrome de Down, diabetes mellitus tipo 1, hipotireoidismo e condições autoimunes, como a síndrome de Sjögren, o lúpus eritematoso sistêmico e a uveíte. Os casos familiares são raros.
O diagnóstico de acalasia deve ser suspeitado em pacientes com disfagia para sólidos e líquidos que não melhora com o uso de inibidores da bomba de prótons. Se não for tratada, a acalasia é uma doença progressiva que pode evoluir para megaesôfago e está associada a um aumento do risco de carcinoma de células escamosas do esôfago. Embora não existam critérios padronizados para determinar a gravidade da doença, o diâmetro e a confirmação do esôfago dentro da cavidade torácica são geralmente considerados os dois principais fatores. A escala de Eckardt é uma escala frequentemente usada para avaliar a gravidade da doença e a eficácia da terapia. Qualitativamente, a acalasia grave é definida como um diâmetro esofágico maior que 6 cm; a acalasia em estágio avançado inclui a angulação distal, um esôfago sigmóide/tortuoso com diâmetro maior que 6 cm ou um megaesôfago com diâmetro maior que 10 cm. Aproximadamente 5% a 15% das pessoas com acalasia evoluem para acalasia em estágio avançado, são geralmente resistentes aos tratamentos endoscópicos e cirúrgicos iniciais e, em última instância, requerem uma esofagectomia.
MIOTOMIA Á HELLER
A miotomia laparoscópica de Heller (LHM) com fundoplicatura parcial, desenvolvida como uma alternativa minimamente invasiva à miotomia anterior aberta tradicional e posteriormente à miotomia toracoscópica, tem sido o padrão ouro para o tratamento da acalasia nas últimas três décadas. O objetivo da miotomia é abrir completamente o EEI e aliviar a disfagia. A LHM proporciona alívio sintomático inicial da disfagia em cerca de 90% dos pacientes com tipos I e II de acalasia e em 50% dos pacientes com tipo III de acalasia, enquanto diminui as taxas de refluxo pós-operatório. Em comparação com os procedimentos de miotomia aberta, a LHM está associada a menor dor pós-operatória, menor tempo de internação hospitalar e retorno mais precoce à função. A LHM é indicada como tratamento de primeira linha para todos os candidatos à cirurgia com acalasia que estejam dispostos a se submeter à cirurgia ou para aqueles que falharam na dilatação endoscópica. A operação consiste em dividir os músculos do EEI, seguida por uma fundoplicatura para diminuir o refluxo pós-operatório. A fundoplicatura parcial é favorecida em relação à fundoplicatura total porque reduz a falha do tratamento. As duas principais complicações da cirurgia são perfuração da mucosa e DRGE.
Surgical Management of Chronic Pancreatitis
Chronic pancreatitis is a progressive, destructive inflammatory process that ends in destruction of the pancreatic parenchyma resulting in malabsorption, diabetes mellitus, and severe pain. The etiology of chronic pancreatitis is multifactorial. About 65–70% of patients have a history of alcohol abuse, the remaining patients are classified as idiopathic chronic pancreatitis (20–25%), including tropical pancreatitis, a major cause of childhood chronic pancreatitis in tropical regions, or unusual causes including hereditary pancreatitis, cystic fibrosis, and chronic pancreatitis-associated metabolic and congenital factors. Current evidence suggests that a combination of predisposing factors, including environmental, toxic, and genetic, are involved in most patients rather than one single factor. The best-known hypotheses about the pathogenesis of chronic pancreatitis include necrosis-fibrosis, toxic-metabolic, oxidative stress, plug and stone formation with duct obstruction, and primary duct obstruction. Repeated episodes of inflammation initiated by autodigestion, one or more episodes of severe pancreatitis, oxidative stress, and/or toxic-metabolic factors lead to activation and continued stimulation of parenchymal pancreatic stellate cells. These stellate cells cause the fibrosis characteristic of chronic pancreatitis. Nevertheless, multiple hypotheses exist to explain the pathophysiology in the various subgroups of patients with chronic pancreatitis, but to date there is no single unifying theory.
OPERATIVE TREATMENT
There are several different concepts for the operative treatment of chronic pancreatitis. The concept of preservation of functioning pancreatic parenchyma (drainage operations) would be the goal for protection against further loss of pancreatic function. The second main concept is based on resective procedures either in the situation where there is no dilation of the pancreatic duct, if the pancreatic head is enlarged, or if a pancreatic carcinoma is suspected in the setting of chronic pancreatitis. These two concepts involve different operative procedures.
Drainage procedures
Sphincterotomy of the pancreatic duct was one of the first operative procedures proposed for patients with a dilated pancreatic duct in chronic pancreatitis with presumed obstruction or stenosis at the papilla Vater. Unfortunately, this procedure was associated with minimal lasting success for the amelioration of pain, indicating that a stenosis at the papilla of Vater is not the cause of pain in chronic pancreatitis nor the cause of ductal dilation. In contrast, direct ductal-enteric drainage by the original Puestow procedure or its modification by Partington and Rochelle is more successful in patients with chronic pancreatitis and a dilated pancreatic duct. The original Puestow procedure included resection of the tail of the pancreas with filleting open the pancreatic duct proximally along the body of the pancreas with anastomosis to a Roux-en-Y loop of jejunum. Partington and Rochelle modified the Puestow procedure by eliminating the resection of the pancreatic tail. A recent procedure involves a wedge-shaped opening of the pancreatic duct (even when the duct is <5 mm) with a subsequent pancreatico-jejunostomy. The preservation of functional tissue and reduction of operative mortality to less than 1% and morbidity to less than 10% are the goals and benefits of this operation. Unfortunately, large series have reported persistence or recurrence of pain at long-term follow up (>5 year) in 30–50% of patients; in addition, patients with a dominant mass in the head of the pancreas and a non-dilated pancreatic duct do not appear to profit from a drainage procedure at all. A recent randomized controlled trial demonstrated that operative drainage in selected patients with a large duct was more effective than endoscopic treatment in patients with obstruction of the pancreatic duct.
Pancreatic Resections
Pancreatoduodenectomy (Kausch-Whipple procedure). For many surgeons, a pancreatoduodenectomy is the gold standard for patients with the pain of chronic pancreatitis, although the newer, duodenum-preserving procedures are good (and possibly better) alternatives as well (see below). The approach of resection of the proximal gland is based on Longmire’s tenet that the ‘‘pacemaker’’ of pain is in the head of the pancreas. The indications for pancreatoduodenectomy in patients with chronic pancreatitis and pain are:
(1) a non-dilated pancreatic duct (diameter < 6 mm measured in the body of the gland),
(2) an enlarged head of the pancreas, often containing cysts and calcifications,
(3) a previous, ineffective ductal drainage procedure, and/or
(4) when there is the possibility of malignancy in the head of the gland.
This latter subgroup comprises up to 6–10% of patients undergoing operative intervention for chronic pancreatitis. After pancreatoduodenectomy, > 80% of patients have permanent pain relief, which is greater than after a drainage operation. In experienced centers, a pancreatoduodenectomy can be performed with a low operative mortality rate (< 2%), and a morbidity of 40%. Although the classic pancreatoduodenectomy has these advantages, there is some long-term morbidity in chronic pancreatitis patients, especially regarding quality of life. In addition to development of diabetes, patients experience postoperative digestive dysfunction, including dumping, diarrhea, peptic ulcer, and dyspeptic complaints. To address these effects of the classic pancreatoduodenectomy which involved a distal gastrectomy, ‘‘organ-preserving’’ operations like the pylorus-preserving pancreatoduodenectomy. Symptoms of dumping and bile-reflux gastritis can be decreased by preserving the stomach, the pylorus, and the first part of the duodenum. In addition, regarding quality of life, a pylorus-preserving technique provides better results than the classic pancreatoduodenectomy procedure; weight gain occurs in 90% of the patients postoperatively while still leading to long-lasting pain relief in 85–90% of the patients. Pylorus-preserving resections, however, appear to have a greater incidence of transient delayed gastric emptying postoperatively (20–30% of the patients) as well as the risk of cholangitis and the long-term occurrence of exocrine and endocrine pancreatic insufficiency (seen in >45% of patients), representing the possible drawbacks of this operation in chronic pancreatitis patients. The relevant studies (level I and II) comparing classic with pylorus preserving pancreatoduodenectomy could not demonstrate a clear advantage for either resection. One should remember, however, that pancreatoduodenectomy was originally introduced to treat malignant pancreatic or periampullary disease by an oncologic resection. Therefore, for a benign disorder such as chronic pancreatitis, there is no reason – other than the occasional inability to exclude pancreatic cancer definitely – to remove peripancreatic organs (the distal stomach, the duodenum, and the extrahepatic bile ducts), which are involved only secondarily in chronic pancreatitis. This concept stimulated the development of organ-preserving pancreatic resections.
Duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection (DPPHR).
This procedure addresses patients with a dominant mass in the head of the pancreas with or without a dilated main pancreatic duct. The duodenum-preserving resection (Beger procedure) includes a ventral dissection and dorsal mobilization of the head of the pancreas. After division of the pancreas anterior to the porto-mesenteric vein (as with a pancreatoduodenectomy), the resection is carried out toward the papilla of Vater. A subtotal resection of the pancreatic head is carried out leaving a small margin of pancreatic tissue associated with the duodenum containing the common bile duct; a small rim of pancreatic tissue toward the vena cava should be preserved as well during removal of most all of the uncinate process. In most patients, it is possible to free the bile duct from the surrounding scarring without disrupting continuity with the ampulla of Vater, thereby avoiding the need for a bilio-digestive anastomosis.
In some patients (20%), the common bile duct is obstructed and should be opened, so that the bile will drain into the cavity of the resected pancreatic head which is drained into a Roux-en-Y limb of jejunum. The standard reconstruction consists of a Roux-en- pancreaticojejunostomy to the distal pancreatic remnant (body and tail of pancreas) and a pancreatojejunostomy to the rim of pancreas at the duodenum (including the opened bile duct if needed). In up to 10% of patients, this DPPHR procedure is combined with a lateral pancreaticojejunostomy to drain multiple stenoses of the main pancreatic duct. The mortality rate is low (1%), and the morbidity rate is around 15%, less than after pancreatoduodenectomy.
When compared with pancreatoduodenectomy in patients with chronic pancreatitis, the DPPHR offers the advantage of preserving the duodenum and extrahepatic biliary tree, and its superiority over even the pylorus-preserving resection has been shown in prospective studies. Patients who underwent the DPPHR had greater weight gain, a better glucose tolerance, and a higher capacity for insulin secretion. In long-term follow-up, about 20% of the patients developed new onset of diabetes mellitus, like the incidence of diabetes after pancreatoduodenectomy. There is some evidence that endocrine function may be better preserved after DPPHR when compared with patients with chronic pancreatitis not undergoing operation, secondary to the relief of pancreatic ductal obstruction/hypertension. Regarding pain status, 90% of patients after DPPHR have long-term relief of pain. Regarding quality of life, 69% of the patients in one study were rehabilitated professionally, 26% retired, and only 5% of the patients were unimproved. Considering the better pain status, a lesser frequency of acute episodes of chronic pancreatitis, especially in those patients with an enlarged pancreatic head, marked decrease in the need for further hospitalization, low early and late mortality rate, and the restoration of a better quality of life, evidence suggests that DPPHR may delay the natural course of the disease of chronic pancreatitis.
The DPPHR was modified by Frey and colleagues to include a longitudinal pancreatico-jejunostomy combined with a local ‘‘coring out’’ of the pancreatic head without the need for an extensive dissection near the superior mesenteric vessels as with the DPPHR. The Frey and DPPHR have undergone evaluation in multiple comparative trials, confirming their effectiveness as operative procedures for chronic pancreatitis. A modified technique (Bern procedure) of the Beger and Frey procedures has been described recently in patients with chronic pancreatitis. This extended Frey procedure combines the advantages of the Beger and Frey procedure by maintaining a non-anatomic, subtotal central pancreatic head resection but without the need for transsection of the gland over the superior mesenteric vein (SMV), the most tedious part of the DPPHR procedure which was the major advantage offered by the Frey procedure. This modified technique reduces the risk of intraoperative bleeding which is especially increased in the presence of portal hypertension.
Left-sided pancreatic resection (distal pancreatectomy)
Most surgeons believe that the pancreatic head is the pacemaker in chronic pancreatitis, and therefore, pancreatic head resections should be the target for most patients with chronic pancreatitis affecting the entire gland. There is, however, a small and carefully selected group of patients in whom a left-sided pancreatic resection is the appropriate treatment. This subgroup is selected by imaging techniques, including CT, ERCP, or MRI outlining inflammatory complications, such as pseudocysts, fistula, and pancreatic duct stenosis, involving only (or primarily) the body and/or tail region of the pancreas. A good example is the patient who develops a mid-ductal stricture after an episode of necrotizing pancreatitis secondary to gallstone pancreatitis. Similarly, suspicion of a neoplasm or recurrent acute pancreatitis believed secondary to an isolated, mid-ductal stricture may be justification for a left-sided pancreatic resection. Overall, about 10% of all patients who undergo operative intervention for chronic pancreatitis may be candidates for a distal pancreatectomy. These distal pancreatectomies for benign disease can be performed without splenectomy, but conservation of the splenic artery and vein can be difficult and is time-consuming. Nevertheless, the advantage of avoiding the possibility of overwhelming postsplenectomy sepsis should be taken into consideration as well as the importance of the spleen for maintenance of the host defense system. Thus, preservation of the spleen is desirable if there is no clear indication for splenectomy, such as perisplenic pseudocyst or inflammatory/fibrotic encasement of the splenic vessels.
Central pancreatectomy (middle segmentectomy).
Benign lesions of the neck and proximal body of the pancreas, such as the exceedingly rare focal chronic pancreatitis or post-traumatic pancreatitis, pose an interesting operative challenge. If the lesions are not amenable to simple enucleation, surgeons may be faced with the choice of performing a right-sided resection (pancreatoduodenectomy) or a left-sided resection (distal pancreatectomy) to include the lesion, resulting in resection of a substantial amount of otherwise functioning pancreatic parenchyma. Central pancreatic resections have been reported primarily for benign or low-grade neoplasms with Roux-en-Y pancreatojejunostomy reconstruction. Central pancreatectomy affords the possibility of saving functional pancreatic tissue in attempt to avoid the complications of pancreatic insufficiency. Further studies, however, must prove the effectiveness of such an operation for patients with chronic pancreatitis. Central resections in patients with chronic pancreatitis must be viewed with caution and considered only in highly selected cases.
Pancreatic resection with islet cell autotransplantation.
Because of the concerns of pancreatic endocrine insufficiency after any pancreatic resection for chronic pancreatitis, renewed interest has focused on the possibility of performing a total pancreatectomy, isolating the islets, and reinfusing (autotransplanting) the islets into the liver. Improvements in islet cell harvesting and preservation for islet cell allotransplantation for diabetics have allowed new enthusiasm in this technique for patients with chronic pancreatitis. Results to date are encouraging, but the inability to harvest reliably an adequate number of islets and to prove successful engraftment within the liver remain current limitations. This approach may be more effective early in the disease when islets have not been depleted.
OUTCOMES
In summary, definite evidence for the best operative method for treating painful chronic pancreatitis is still not fully accepted. The study designs in the few randomized controlled trials (evidencebased Level I data) available today have some limitations in design and reporting of morbidity and include only small numbers of patients. Nevertheless, the different variations of the DPPHR, Beger, Frey, and Bern procedures appear to be as equally successful in achieving long-term pain control as pancreatoduodenectomy, but they have fewer postoperative complications and appear to be superior with regard to preservation of pancreatic function and quality of life.
Visão Crítica de Segurança (Colecistectomia)
A colecistectomia laparoscópica (CL) é o padrão-ouro para tratamento de cálculos biliares. No entanto, o risco de lesão do ducto biliar (BDI) continua a ser preocupação significativa, uma vez que CL ainda tem taxa de BDI maior do que a via laparotômica, apesar de muitos esforços propostos para aumentar sua segurança. A Visão Crítica da Segurança (CVS) proposta por Strasberg é a técnica para a identificação dos elementos críticos do triângulo de Calot durante a CL. Esta técnica foi adotada em vários programas de ensino e com a proposta de reduzir o risco de BDI e o uso da adequado da CVS está associado a menores taxas de BDI. O objetivo deste #Webinar é abordar a Anatomia Cirúrgica Fundamental para a realização de uma Colecistectomia Laparoscópica.
Intraoperative cholangiography: Selective or Routine?
Intraoperative cholangiography (IOC), described by Mirizzi in 1932, represented a significant advance in the diagnosis of choledocolithiasis during cholecystectomy. The natural history of asymptomatic choledocolithiasis has been investigated in different populations and its therapeutic management continues to be controversial. IOC is traditionally advocated as a procedure to be adopted in all laparoscopic cholecystectomies since it permits to define the anatomy of the biliary tract and to detect common bile duct stones. However, in the laparoscopic era, technological advances in radiologic-endoscopic workup have markedly increased the costs of investigation of patients with suspected choledocolithiasis. The routine use of IOC has raised the question of which cases require the exploration of bile tract anatomy during surgery and whether there are methods to predict preoperatively unsuspected choledocolithiasis. Therefore, the most appropriate management of preoperatively unsuspected choledocolithiasis, i.e., the routine or selective use of IOC, still remains undefined. In this respect, well-defined criteria for the inclusion of patients with possible choledocolithiasis who should be submitted to cholangiography exist in the literature, but there is no safe approach to exclude asymptomatic patients without an indication for contrast examination.
A systematic literature search was performed by KOVACS N, et al (2022) using the following search keys: cholangiogra* and cholecystectomy. The primary outcomes were BDI and retained stone rate. To investigate the differences between the groups (routine IOC vs selective IOC and IOC vs no IOC), they calculated weighted mean differences (WMD) for continuous outcomes and relative risks (RR) for dichotomous outcomes, with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Of the 19,863 articles, 38 were selected and 32 were included in the quantitative synthesis. Routine IOC showed no superiority compared to selective IOC in decreasing BDI (RR = 0.91, 95% CI 0.66; 1.24). Comparing IOC and no IOC, no statistically significant differences were found in the case of BDI, retained stone rate, readmission rate, and length of hospital stay. They found an increased risk of conversion rate to open surgery in the no IOC group (RR = 0.64, CI 0.51; 0.78). The operation time was significantly longer in the IOC group compared to the no IOC group (WMD = 11.25 min, 95% CI 6.57; 15.93). So this data findings suggest that IOC may not be indicated in every case, however, the evidence is very uncertain.
Postpancreatectomy Hemorrhage
Postoperative complications represent one of the most debated topics in pancreatic surgery. Indeed, the rate of complications following pancreatectomy is among the highest in abdominal surgery, with morbidity ranging between 30 and 60%. They are often characterized by elevated clinical burden, with a consequent challenging postoperative management. Mortality rates can exceed 5%. The impact on patient recovery and hospital stay eventually leads to massive utilization of resources and increases costs for the health system. The International Study Group of Pancreatic Surgery (ISGPS) provides standardized definitions and clinically based classifications for the most common complications after pancreatectomy, including postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF), post pancreatectomy hemorrhage (PPH), delayed gastric emptying (DGE), bile leakage, and chyle leak.
Post Pancreatectomy Hemorrhage
Despite its lower incidence compared with POPF with reported rates of 3–10% after pancreatectomy, PPH remains one of the major of postoperative complications, with mortality rates ranging from 30 to 50%. According to current ISGPS recommendations, PPH is classified in three grades (A, B, and C) based on two main criteria: timing of the hemorrhage and severity of the bleeding. The timing is dichotomized as early, occurring within 24 hours from the index surgery, and late, when it happens afterwards.
Management is tailored according to the clinical picture, the timing of onset, and the presumptive location. Early hemorrhage is generally due to either unsuccessful intraoperative hemostasis or to an underlying coagulopathy. The vast majority of patients are basically asymptomatic, with PPH having no influence on the postoperative course. However, when the bleeding is severe, re-laparotomy is recommended, with the aim of finding and controlling the source of bleeding. This approach usually guarantees an uneventful subsequent course. Late PPH is often challenging and the pathogenesis is diverse. Vascular erosion secondary to POPF or intraabdominal abscess, late failure of intraoperative hemostatic devices, arterial pseudoaneurysm, and intraluminal ulceration are some of the most common causes. In this setting, surgical access to the source of bleeding may be challenging. Angiography (if extraluminal) and endoscopy (if intraluminal) represent the primary approaches to treatment. Surgery is reserved for hemodynamically unstable patients and for those who present with deteriorating condition, multiorgan failure or sepsis. Given these assumptions, except for early mild events, contrast-enhanced abdominal CT is crucial in all cases of PPH, possibly allowing identification of the source and planning the management accordingly. Also, it should be noted that late massive hemorrhages may be preceded by mild self-limiting sentinel bleeds. A prompt abdominal CT scan aimed at excluding vascular lesions is therefore strongly recommended in these cases.
The incidence of complications following pancreatic resection remains high. The ISGPS established standardized definitions and clinical grading systems for POPF, PPH, DGE, and biliary and chyle leak. These classification systems have enabled unbiased comparisons of intraoperative techniques and management decisions. However, the management policies of these complications are most often driven by a patient’s condition and local surgical expertise and is not always based on the available high-level evidence. The development of high-volume specialized units with appropriate resources and multidisciplinary experience in complication management might further improve the evidence and the outcomes.
Subtotal cholecystectomy for difficult acute cholecystitis
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is considered the gold standard for treatment of benign gallbladder diseases. Cholecystectomy using this method can be completed in 90% of elective cholecystectomies and 70% of emergency cholecystectomies. Acute cholecystitis, especially if difficult, can change the above paradigm, resulting in open conversion or change of technique. The conditions that define a difficult cholecystectomy are as follows: necessity of conversion from laparoscopic to open surgery; duration of procedure greater than 180 min; blood loss greater than 300 ml; and urgent need for involvement of a more experienced surgeon. One of the “rescue” procedures to complete the surgery safely (both for the surgeons and patients) is subtotal cholecystectomy (STC). Open and laparoscopic subtotal cholecystectomy have been reported. For many surgeons, this is considered a bail out technique, and the timing of decision making is crucial to avoid catastrophic complications. Te capability to perform STC in laparoscopy is increasingly requested during difficult laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Difficult LC has a risk of BDI from 3 to 5 times higher in laparoscopy than open surgery. In case of operative difficulties of young surgeons mostly trained in laparoscopy the help of senior surgeons is strongly recommended. The purpose of the present study is to clarify how laparoscopic subtotal cholecystectomy may be used to complete a difficult cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis without serious complications.
Biliary leakage represents the most frequent complication of incomplete resection of the gallbladder wall in cases of difficult acute cholecystectomy treated with subtotal cholecystectomy. This complication is rarely fatal but requires correct treatment. If bile leakage does not stop spontaneously seven days postoperatively, the possible treatments are endoscopic biliary sphincterotomy, endoscopic plastic stent, and a fully covered self-expanding metal stent. When performing closure of the gallbladder stump, suturing the anterior residual of both anterior and posterior wall represents the best method to have fewer complications. Complications, if not lethal, decrease the patient’s quality of life. Intraoperatively, it is of utmost importance to carefully expose the gallbladder stump to avoid left-in-place stones, wash the entire cavity and drain the abdomen. Bile duct injuries can be a significant complication in this type of surgery. Prevention of the lesions with conversion from laparoscopic to open, or the opinion of older surgeon in case of difficulties is strongly recommended. Mortality is a very rare complication. The limitations of our study are given by the heterogeneity of the techniques used for LSC and the lack of a long-term follow-up analyzing the related complications.
Obstrução Intestinal por ADERÊNCIAS pós-operatórias
A obstrução intestinal ocorre quando a propulsão do conteúdo entérico em direção ao ânus sofre interferência. Há vários critérios para classificá-la: quanto ao nível (delgado alto e baixo ou cólon), quanto ao grau (completa, incompleta – suboclusão ou “alça fechada”), quanto ao estado de circulação sangüínea (simples ou estrangulada), quanto ao tipo de evolução (aguda ou crônica) e quanto à natureza da obstrução (mecânica, vascular ou funcional). Ao que se a figura, em torno de 20% das cirurgias por quadros de abdome agudo são de pacientes com obstrução intestinal. Atualmente, as aderências pós-operatórias são a principal causa em todas os grupos etários. Hérnia inguinal estrangulada, outrora causa mais comum, figura em segundo lugar, seguida de neoplasia intestinal. Esses três agentes etiológicos respondem por mais de 80% de todas as obstruções.
QUADRO CLÍNICO
Os sintomas cardinais são: dor, náuseas e vômitos, parada da eliminação de gases e fezes com distensão abdominal, sendo que esta manifestação ocorre mais tarde. A dor é tipicamente em cólica, de início brusco, em salva, ocorrendo a intervalos regulares, de localização epigástrica, periumbilical ou hipogástrica, dependendo do nível da obstrução. Se a dor se tornar contínua, localizada ou difusa nos intervalos entre as cólicas, é grande a suspeita de comprometimento vascular, ou seja, isquemia intestinal. Nas obstruções mecânicas altas os vômitos são freqüentes, surgem precocemente e são constituídos de material estagnado e de aspecto bilioso; nas obstruções de cólon as náuseas e vômitos podem inexistir. Na obstrução mecânica os sintomas de obstipação são tardios. A parada total da eliminação de gases e fezes é o apanágio da obstrução completa. Na suboclusão, o paciente pode continuar eliminando gases. A distensão abdominal pode surgir algumas horas depois de iniciados os sintomas, em função do nível de obstrução, sendo ausente ou discreta nas oclusões altas do intestino delgado, intensa e precoce nas baixas e mais tardias nas obstruções do cólon.
EXAME FÍSICO
O exame físico nas primeiras 24 horas pode revelar pouquíssimos achados anormais, a não ser durante os períodos de cólica, os sinais vitais mantêm-se normais, e a desidratação e distensão ainda não são pronunciadas. Há defesa de parede durante a palpação, e a descoberta de massa ou área restrita de dor é sugestiva de estrangulamento. A ausculta é de grande valor, pois o abdome é silencioso, exceto nos ataques de cólica, nos quais os ruídos são altos, agudos e metálicos. Em torno do segundo ou terceiro dia a doença agrava-se visivelmente, quando a desidratação e a distensão estão acentuadas e os sinais vitais se alteram, apesar da obstrução simples só acarretar choque tardiamente.
PROPEDÊUTICA
Podem ser feitos exames complementares não só para o diagnóstico, como também para terapêutica. Exemplo disto é o tratamento do volvo de sigmóide com o auxílio da retossigmoidoscopia ou colonoscopia pela passagem, sob visão direta, de sonda além da zona de torção. A radiografia do abdome e a Tomografia Computadorizada é fundamental para confirmação diagnóstica, melhor compreensão dos dados clínicos e também pode ajudar a elucidar etiologias. Os exames laboratoriais, permitem avaliar o grau e tipo de desequilíbrio metabólico, o que será fundamental para a terapêutica, definindo se há ou não sofrimento vascular.
TRATAMENTO
Os princípios da terapêutica são a reposição de líquidos e eletrólitos, a descompressão do intestino e a intervenção cirúrgica no momento adequado. Absolutamente todos os pacientes com obstrução intestinal COMPLETA, devem ser operados. Há 5 categorias de manobras cirúrgicas: extraluminares, enterotomia para retirada de corpos estranhos da luz, ressecção intestinal, operações de desvio de trânsito e operações de descompressão. Pelo fato de ser intervenção cirúrgica de urgência, as complicações pós-operatórias são mais freqüentes. As mais observadas são: infecção de parede, íleo prolongado, sepse, complicações pulmonares e infecção urinária.
#Bolsonaro #ObstruçãoIntestinal #Aderências
The “BAD” Gallbladder
Once the decision for surgery has been made, an operative plan needs to be discussed and implemented. Should one initially start with laparoscopic surgery for the “bad gallbladder”? If a laparoscopic approach is taken, when should bail-out maneuvers be attempted? Is converting to open operation still the standard next step? A 2016 study published by Ashfaq and colleagues sheds some light on our first question. They studied 2212 patients who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy, of which 351 were considered “difficult gallbladders.” A difficult gallbladder was considered one that was necrotic or gangrenous, involved Mirizzi syndrome, had extensive adhesions, was converted to open, lasted more than 120 minutes, had a prior tube cholecystostomy, or had known gallbladder perforation. Seventy of these 351 operations were converted to open. The indications for conversion included severe inflammation and adhesions around the gallbladder rendering dissection of triangle of Calot difficult (n 5 37 [11.1%]), altered anatomy (n 5 14 [4.2%]), and intraoperative bleeding that was difficult to control laparoscopically (n 5 6 [1.8%]). The remaining 13 patients (18.5%) included a combination of cholecystoenteric fistula, concern for malignancy, common bile duct exploration for stones, and inadvertent enterotomy requiring small bowel repair. Comparing the total laparoscopic cholecystectomy group and the conversion groups, operative time and length of hospital stay were significantly different; 147 +- 47 minutes versus 185 +- 71 minutes (P<.005) and 3+-2 days versus 5+-3 days (P 5 .011), respectively. There was no significant difference in postoperative hemorrhage, subhepatic collection, cystic duct leak, wound infection, reoperation, and 30-day mortality.2 From these findings, we can glean that most cholecystectomies should be started laparoscopically, because it is safe to do so. It is the authors’ practice to start laparoscopically in all cases.
BAILOUT PROCEDURES
Despite the best efforts of experienced surgeons, it is sometimes impossible to safely obtain the critical view of safety in a bad gallbladder with dense inflammation and even scarring in the hepatocystic triangle. Continued attempts to dissect in this hazardous region can lead to devastating injury, including transection of 1 or both hepatic ducts, the common bile duct, and/or a major vascular injury (usually the right hepatic artery). Therefore, it is imperative that any surgeon faced with a bad gallbladder have a toolkit of procedures to safely terminate the operation while obtaining maximum symptom and source control, rather than continue to plunge blindly into treacherous terrain. If the critical view of safety cannot be achieved owing to inflammation, and when further dissection in the hepatocystic triangle is dangerous, these authors default to laparoscopic subtotal cholecystectomy as our bail-out procedure of choice. The rationale for this approach is that it resolves symptoms by removing the majority of the gallbladder, leading to low (although not zero) rates of recurrent symptoms. It is safe, and can be easily completed laparoscopically, thus avoiding the longer hospital stay and morbidity of an open operation. There is now significant data supporting this approach. In a series of 168 patients (of whom 153 were laparoscopic) who underwent subtotal cholecystectomy for bad gallbladders, the mean operative time was 150 minutes (range, 70–315 minutes) and the average blood loss was 170 mL (range, 50–1500 mL). The median length of stay for these patients was 4 days (range, 1–68 days), and there were no common bile duct injuries.23 There were 12 postoperative collections (7.1%), 4 wound infections (2.4%), 1 bile leak (0.6%), and 7 retained stones (4.2%), but the 30-day mortality was similar to those who underwent a total laparoscopic cholecystectomy. A systematic review and meta-analysis by Elshaer and colleagues showed that subtotal cholecystectomy achieves comparable morbidity rates compared with total cholecystectomy. These data support the idea that we should move away from the idea that the only acceptable outcome for a cholecystectomy is the complete removal of a gallbladder, especially when it is not safe to do so. This shift toward subtotal cholecystectomy has been appropriately referred to as the safety first, total cholecystectomy second approach.
Managing the “difficult” gallbladder
The gold standard for the surgical treatment of symptomatic cholelithiasis is conventional laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). The “difficult gallbladder” is a scenario in which a cholecystectomy turns into an increased surgical risk compared with standard cholecystectomy. The procedure may be difficult due to processes that either obscure normal biliary anatomy (such as acute or chronic inflammation) or operative exposure (obesity or adhesions caused by prior upper abdominal surgery). So, when confronted with a difficult cholecystectomy, the surgeon has a must: to turn the operation into a safe cholecystectomy, which can mean conversion (to an open procedure), cholecystostomy, or partial/ subtotal cholecystectomy. The surgeon should understand that needs to rely on damage control, to prevent more serious complications if choosing to advance and progress to a complete cholecystectomy.
When to Predict a Difficult Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy
A difficult cholecystectomy may be predicted preoperatively based on patient characteristics and ultrasound and laboratory findings. This is probably a very important step in mitigating the high risk associated with a difficult procedure and may serve either to reschedule the procedure or design intraoperative strategies of management to guarantee a safe performance of the surgical procedure.
The following situations are associated with a higher chance of a difficult cholecystectomy:
• Acute cholecystitis (more than 5 days of onset)
• Previous cholecystitis episode
• Male sex
• Obesity
• Cirrhosis
• Sclero-atrophic gallbladder
• Thick walls (>5 mm)
• Previous signs of canalicular dwelling (clinical and laboratory)
Through multivariate analysis, Bourgoin identified these elements of predictive help to identify difficult LC: male sex, previous cholecystitis attack, fibrinogen, neutrophil, and alkaline phosphatase levels. Another important point is the fact of conversion from a laparoscopic procedure to an open and traditional cholecystectomy, usually through a right subcostal incision. Conversion should not be considered as a personal failure, and the surgeon needs to understand the concept of “safety first,” considering that conversion is performed in order to complete the procedure without additional risks and preventing complications and not solving intraoperative complications. It is also useful to define a time threshold to aid in the decision to convert. It is not worth taking an hour and a half and still dissecting adhesions, preventing the correct visualization of the cystic pedicle. This time limit represents a method to prevent inefficiencies in the operating room (OR) schedule as well as additional expenditures.
A smart surgeon should rely to conversion in the following situations:
• Lack of progress in the procedure
• Unclear anatomy/any grade of uncertainty
• CVS not achieved
• Bleeding/vascular injury
• BD injury
• Lack of infrastructure, expertise, and support
Final Remarks
The primary goal of a laparoscopic cholecystectomy in the treatment of symptomatic cholelithiasis is the safe remotion of the gallbladder and the absence of common bile duct injury. Some tips to take into account:
– Never perform a laparoscopic cholecystectomy without a skilled surgeon close by.
– Beware of the easy gallbladder.
– Slow down, take your time.
– Knowledge is power, conversión can be the salvation!
– Do not repair a bile duct injury (unless you have performed at least 25 hepaticojejunostomies).
– Do not ignore postoperative complaints (pain, jaundice, major abdominal discomfort, fever)
Other options when confronted with a difficult laparoscopic cholecystectomy are:
– A percutaneous cholecystostomy, if the risk was identified preoperatively or the patient is a poor surgical candidate;
– An intraoperative cholangiography, which may aid in identifying an injury to the bile duct and solve it, if you are an experienced surgeon;
– A subtotal or partial cholecystectomy;
– Ask for help;
– Conversion to an open procedure;
Liver Procurement
Donor Evaluation and Management
There are very few absolute contraindications for abdominal organ donation, which can be summarized in the short form CHUMP: (1) Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, (2) active HIV infection, (3) uncontrolled donor sepsis, (4) history of melanoma or other malignancy that poses a risk for transmission regardless of the apparent disease – free period, and (5) past history of non-curable malignancy (curable malignancy such as localized small kidney tumors, localized prostate cancer, localized colon malignancy >5 years previously may be considered after careful risk/benefit assessment). In addition to these general criteria, there are organ-specific criteria for guiding the acceptance of a liver for transplantation. A history of hepatitis or alcoholism is certainly a warning sign, but both livers from HBsAg-positive and/or HCV-positive donors are currently used worldwide, and suitability for transplant must be judged on a case-by-case basis. In general, in the case of a marginal liver donor, the intraoperative assessment by the donor surgeon, in addition to liver biopsy pathological evaluation, is the best single piece of information.
Technical Aspects of Liver Procurement
A midline laparotomy from the xyphoid to the pubis is performed and the round ligament divided. The intra-abdominal organs are explored to check for eventual malignancies, and the quality of the liver is assessed: in the absence of contraindications for a transplant, a sternotomy can be performed. Of note, in the presence of prior heart surgery, the complete warm dissection should be made prior to the sternotomy. It is also prudential to isolate and encircle the aorta prior to sternotomy in order to be ready to cannulate in the event of cardiac arrest/injury at thoracotomy. A blunt dissection behind the sternum just below the jugular notch should be performed until the fingertip can be placed retrosternal around the jugular notch. The sternotomy is then performed in a cranial to caudal direction with the sternum saw to avoid left innominate vein injury. The division of the left triangular ligament allows the mobilization of the left lateral segments of the liver and the exposure of the supraceliac aorta just below the diaphragm to be encircled. The division of the falciform ligament up to the suprahepatic inferior vena cava (IVC) provides more mobility of the liver, necessary when the IVC must be divided from a cardiac graft. Before starting the dissection of the hepatoduodenal ligament, the hepatogastric ligament must be inspected by dividing the lesser omentum. This ligament is usually very thin and transparent so that any replaced or accessory left hepatic artery should be easily visible. In addition, palpation of the ventral border of the foramen of Winslow makes it possible to identify a possible accessory or replaced right hepatic artery. Variations in the hepatic arterial supply can complicate the hilar dissection in up to one third of donors.
THE HILAR STRUCTURES
The hilar structures of the liver are then dissected free; the common bile duct (CBD) is dissected on the level of the edge of the second duodenal portion after opening of the peritoneum and visualization of the duct. In difficult cases, due to a high BMI, following the cystic duct out of the gall bladder can help to identify the CBD. The CBD should be encircled from the lateral border of the hepatoduodenal ligament in order to avoid injury of the portal vein. The CBD and the gallbladder are opened and flushed with normosaline solution. The origins of the gastroduodenal, gastric, and splenic arteries are then identified and encircled and, in the case of liver only procurement, will be taped just before cross-clamping in order to increase flushing through the hepatic artery to the liver.
VASCULAR CANULATION / SOLUTION PRESERVATION
The aorta can be isolated by two approaches. One approach requires mobilization of the right colon on top of Gerota’s fascia and should be extended into a Kocher maneuver to uncover both the inferior vena cava and the abdominal aorta; the other approach is performed by opening the root of the mesentery from the Treitz fascia, along the margin of the duodenum until visualization of the right iliac vessels and ureter is achieved. The inferior mesenteric artery can be tied and divided, and the abdominal aorta, just 2–3 cm above the bifurcation, isolated and encircled. The lumbar arteries could be either tied or clipped and then cut in order to provide mobility of the aorta and facilitate the cannulation. Two umbilical tapes are placed around the dissected segment of the aorta and secured by clamps and will be used to secure aortic cannulae to the vessel. The inferior mesenteric vein (IMV) is most commonly used for access into the portal system by ligating the distal part of it but leaving it uncut to retract the vein with a mosquito clamp. Another tie is then placed around the cranial portion of the vein, using it for occlusion of the vein by retracting it while a partial incision of the vein is performed. The portal cannula can be inserted into the IMV while the tension of the occluding tie is decreased before tying it around the vein and inserted cannula. At this point, 30,000-IU heparin should be given to prevent the blood from clotting after the cross-clamping. Once these preliminary procedures have been completed, the aortic cannulae (20-F armed cannulae) can be inserted into the distal abdominal aorta and secured with the umbilical tapes.
CROSS-CLAMP
The subdiaphragmatic aorta is now clamped (cross-clamp), and cold preservation solution is then rapidly infused through the aortic and portal cannulae; the liver flow is decompressed by dividing the inferior vena cava in the chest. The abdomen is filled with water and ice. The choice of solution for infusion and its amount varies from center to center. The quality of the flush can be assessed by evaluating the outflow of the supradiaphragmatic IVC which should become more transparent with time as the blood in the abdominal organs is replaced by the preservation solution. After the flush is completed, some of the ice is removed from the abdomen to allow the cold dissection of the structures. The gastroduodenal, gastric, and splenic arteries can now be divided. Just below the gastroduodenal artery, the portal vein can be found and can be followed back, if pancreas procurement is not performed, by dividing the head of the pancreas. The cannulae in the IMV can now be removed, the splenic vein ligated and divided, and the venous cannulae replaced in the superior mesenteric vein once it is divided from its distal branches. The superior mesenteric artery (SMA) can now be found in the retro-pancreatic laminae and should be ligated, secured to a clamp and divided in order to find the aortic plane by following back the SMA. This dissection must be made on the left side of the SMA in order to avoid damage to a possible replaced or accessory right hepatic artery. The renal arteries are usually just below the SMA. They should be visualized before the suprarenal aorta is divided. This section must be made in 45°, first looking for ostia of accessory renal arteries before performing complete separation of the aorta. By following back the splenic and gastric arteries, the celiac trunk can be visualized. The aorta must now be divided just below the diaphragm, obtaining a patch containing the celiac trunk and the origin of the mesenteric artery. At this time point, a finger is placed in the supradiaphragmatic IVC helping to identify it while the diaphragm is cut. A portion of the diaphragm should be kept with the liver to ensure that this gross and fast dissection does not damage the organ. The diaphragm is cut to the right, and the incision is then continued between the right kidney and the liver, usually dividing the adrenal gland which is a good sign that none of the adjacent organs are damaged. The location for division of the infrahepatic IVC depends on the renal veins. These are identified on both sides, and the IVC can be safely divided on the virtual line about 1 cm above the renal veins. The only structures now holding the liver in the abdomen are the diaphragmatic pillars. By keeping the liver to the right thoracic cavity and holding the aortic patch, the resected IVC, and the portal vein with its cannulae, the liver removal can be completed by cutting the diaphragmatic muscles. The liver is freed and taken out of the abdomen. A further perfusion with cool preservation solution should be performed on the back table before packing the liver in the transportation box usually with 1 l of preservation solution. The liver can now be packed in the transportation box.
Biliary Tree Vascularization
The gallbladder lies at the equator between the right and left hemiliver, an imaginary line known as Cantlie’s line or the Rex-Cantlie line coursing between segments 4b and 5, through the bed of the gallbladder towards the vena cava posteriorly. The gallbladder is mostly peritonealized, except for its posterior surface which lies on the cystic plate, a fibrous area on the underside of the liver.
The proportion if its circumference varies, from a pedicled gallbladder with little to no contact with the cystic plate to a mostly intrahepatic gallbladder surrounded by liver parenchyma. The gallbladder carries no muscularis mucosa, no submucosa, and a discontinuous muscularis and only carries a serosa on the visceral peritonealized surface. These anatomical specificities facilitate the direct invasion of gallbladder cancer into the liver. This is why the surgical treatment of gallbladder cancer mandates a radical cholecystectomy, which includes resection of a wedge of segments 4b and 5, when the T stage is higher or equal to T1b. From the body of the gallbladder, a conical infundibulum becomes a cystic duct that extends as the lower edge of the hepatocystic triangle towards the porta hepatis and joins with the common hepatic duct (CHD) to form the CBD. As in the rest of the biliary system, variation is the rule when it comes to the cystic duct confluence with the CHD. It can variably run parallel to it for a distance prior to inserting or spiral behind it and insert on its medial aspect. It can variably insert into the RHD or the RPD, the latter in 4% of livers and particularly when the RPD inserts into the CHD (i.e., below the left-right ductal confluence). This configuration is notorious for exposing the RPD to a risk of injury at the time of cholecystectomy. Rare variations of gallbladder anatomy, including gallbladder duplication and gallbladder agenesis, are also described but are rare. The CBD courses anterolaterally within the hepatoduodenal ligament, usually to the right of the hepatic artery and anterolaterally to the portal vein. However, hepatic arterial anatomy can vary, and when an accessory or replaced hepatic artery is present arising from the superior mesenteric artery, the accessory or replaced vessel courses lateral to the CBD. In its conventional configuration, the right hepatic artery crosses posteriorly to the RHD as it heads towards the right liver, but 25% of the time it crosses anteriorly. These anatomical variants are all relevant to developing a sound surgical strategy to treat hilar CCA. Of note, while left hepatic artery anatomy can also be quite variable, rarely does it affect surgical decision-making in CCA to the same degree as right hepatic artery anatomy.
Distally, the CBD enters the head of the pancreas, joining the pancreatic duct to form the hepatopancreatic ampulla. Just distal to this is the sphincter of Oddi, which controls emptying of ampullary contents into the second portion of the duodenum. When the junction of the CBD and the pancreatic duct occurs before the sphincter complex, reflux of pancreatic enzymes into the biliary tree can lead to chronic inflammatory changes and anatomical distortion resulting in choledochal cysts, known risk factors for the development of CCA. Unlike the rest of the liver parenchyma, which receives dual supply from the arterial and portal venous circulation, the biliary tree is exclusively alimented by the arterial system. The LHD and RHD are alimented respectively by the left hepatic artery and right hepatic artery, which can frequently display replaced, accessory, and aberrant origins – the left artery arising conventionally from the hepatic artery proper but alternatively from the left gastric artery and the right hepatic artery arising from the hepatic artery proper but also variably from the superior mesenteric artery. In hilar CCA, variable combinations of hepatic arterial anatomy and tumor location can either favor resectability or make a tumor unresectable.
Within the hilum of the liver, a plexus of arteries connects the right and left hepatic arteries. Termed the “hilar epicholedochal plexus,” this vascular network provides collateral circulation that can maintain arterial supply to one side of the liver if the ipsilateral vessel is damaged. The preservation of arterial blood supply to the liver remnant is crucial, particularly when creating an enterobiliary anastomosis. Its absence leads to ischemic cholangiopathy and liver abscesses that can be difficult to treat. The CBD receives arterial supply inferiorly from paired arterioles arising from the gastroduodenal artery and the posterior superior pancreaticoduodenal artery, the most important and constant arterial supply to the distal CBD. Proximally the CBD is alimented by paired arterioles of the right hepatic artery. These vessels, known as the marginal arteries, run in parallel to the CBD, laterally and medially to it. Denuding the CBD of this arterial supply risks stricture formation after choledochoenteric anastomosis.
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References : https://bit.ly/3fOmcv2
Hepatocellular ADENOMA
Benign liver tumours are common and are frequently found coincidentally. Most benign liver lesions are asymptomatic, although larger lesions can cause non-specific complaints such as vague abdominal pain. Although rare, some of the benign lesions, e.g. large hepatic adenomas, can cause complications such as rupture or bleeding. Asymptomatic lesions are often managed conservatively by observation. Surgical resection can be performed for symptomatic lesions or when there is a risk of malignant transformation. The type of resection is variable, from small, simple, peripheral resections or enucleations, to large resections or even liver transplantation for severe polycystic liver disease.
General Considerations
Hepatocellular adenomas (HCA) are rare benign hepatic neoplasms in otherwise normal livers with a prevalence of around 0.04% on abdominal imaging. HCAs are predominantly found in women of child-bearing age (2nd to 4th decade) with a history of oral contraceptive use; they occur less frequently in men. The association between oral contraceptive usage and HCA is strong and the risk for a HCA increases if an oral contraceptive with high hormonal potency is used, and if it is used for over 20 months. Long-term users of oral contraceptives have an estimated annual incidence of HCA of 3–4 per 100000. More recently, an increase in incidence in men has been reported, probably related to the increase in obesity, which is reported as another risk factor for developing HCA. In addition, anabolic steroid usage by body builders and metabolic disorders such as diabetes mellitus or glycogen storage disease type I are associated with HCAs. HCAs in men are generally smaller but have a higher risk of developing into a malignancy. In the majority of patients, only one HCA is found, but in a minority of patients more than 10 lesions have been described (also referred to as liver adenomatosis).
Clinical presentation
Small HCAs are often asymptomatic and found on abdominal imaging being undertaken for other purposes, during abdominal surgery or at autopsy. Some patients present with abdominal discomfort, fullness or (right upper quadrant) pain due to an abdominal mass. It is not uncommon that the initial symptoms of a HCA are acute onset of abdominal pain and hypovolaemic shock due to intraperitoneal rupture. In a series of patients who underwent resection, bleeding was reported in up to 25%. The risk of rupture is related to the size of the adenoma. Exophytic lesions (protruding from the liver) have a higher chance of bleeding compared to intrahepatic or subcapsular lesions (67% vs 11% and 19%, respectively, P<0.001). Lesions in segments II and III are also at higher risk of bleeding compared to lesions in the right liver (35% vs 19%, P = 0.049).
Management
There is no guideline for the treatment of HCAs, although there are general agreements. In men, all lesions should be considered for surgical resection independent of size, given the high risk of malignant transformation, while taking into account comorbidity and location of the lesion. Resection should also be considered in patients with HCAs due to a metabolic disorder. In women, lesions <5 cm can be observed with sequential imaging after cessation of oral contraceptive treatment. In larger tumours, treatment strategies vary. Some clinicians have proposed non-surgical management if hormone therapy is stopped and patients are followed up with serial radiological examinations. The time period of waiting is still under debate, however recent studies indicate that a waiting period of longer than 6 months could be justified.
More recently, the subtypes of the Bordeaux classification of HCA have been studied related to their risk of complications. Some groups report that percutaneous core needle biopsy is of limited value because the therapeutic strategy is based primarily on patient sex and tumour size. Others report a different therapeutic approach based on subtype. Thomeer et al. concluded that there was no evidence to support the use of subtype classification in the stratification and management of individual patients related to risk of bleeding. Size still remains the most important feature to predict those at risk of bleeding during follow-up. However, malignant transformation does seem to be related to differences in subtypes. β-catenin-mutated HCAs trigger a potent mitogenic signalling pathway that is prominent in HCC. Cases of inflammatory HCAs can also show activation of the β-catenin pathway with a risk of developing malignancy. Therefore, β-catenin-mutated and inflammatory HCAs are prone to malignant degeneration, and particularly if >5cm. In these circumstances, invasive treatment should be considered.
Liver Uptake on Cadaveric Donors for Transplant
Since the initial descriptions of orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) in the 1960s, both the number of patients receiving transplants and the indications for the procedure have increased significantly. OLT represents the only treatment modality for many patients with a diverse spectrum of disease, with the predominant common factor end-stage liver failure. Advances in perioperative care of the donor and recipient, organ preservation methods, and surgical techniques have resulted in a 5 year overall survival of 78% for all recipients (Kim et al, 2015).
OPERATIVE TECHNIQUES
The first published description of human liver transplantation was by Starzl and colleagues in 1963 at the University of Colorado. In this seminal paper, the dismal outcomes of three OLT recipients were described, including one intraoperative death from uncorrectable coagulopathy and two survivors of 7 and 22 days. In addition to the pioneering conceptual framework and implementation of LT, the advanced techniques included grafts from non–heart-beating donors, venovenous bypass in the recipients, choledochocholedochostomy, and coagulation monitoring by using thromboelastography (TEG). Many of these concepts remain or have reentered the realm of LT more than 40 years after their initial description. Based largely on the initial body of work by Starzl and colleagues, this section describes the surgical procedures commonly used worlwide.
The typical deceased donor has had a catastrophic head injury or an intracerebral bleed, with brain death but without multisystem organ failure. Electrolyte imbalance and hepatic steatosis in the donor are predictors of graft nonfunction. A “donor risk index” has been derived to assess the likelihood of good graft function. Key adverse factors include older donor age (especially >60 years of age), use of a split or partial graft, and a non–heart-beating donor, from which the organs are harvested after the donor’s cardiac output ceases, in contrast to the more typical deceased donation in which the organs are harvested prior to cardiovascular collapse. Use of non–heart-beating donors is associated with reduced rates of long-term graft survival and increased risk of biliary complications, which correlate with the duration of “warm ischemia” after cardiovascular collapse and before retrieval of the organ. With the critical shortage of deceased organ donors, expansion of the donor pool has included acceptance of donors 70 years of age and older for selected recipients. Prior to hepatectomy, the harvesting team makes a visual and, if necessary, histologic assessment of the donor organ. Particular attention is paid to anatomic variants in the hepatic artery that may complicate the graft arterial anastomosis in the recipient. Once donor circulation is interrupted, the organ is rapidly infused with a cold preservation solution (e.g., University of Wisconsin, histidine-tryptophan-ketoglutarate, or Institut Georges Lopez solution). Donor iliac arteries and veins are also retrieved in case vascular grafting is required. After its arrival at the recipient institution, further vascular dissection, with arterial reconstruction if necessary, is performed before implantation.
Future Perspectives
Major challenges remain in LT, including the shortage of donor organs, threat of recurrent disease, and morbidity associated with lifelong therapeutic immunosuppression. Nevertheless, the availability of LT has transformed the lives of patients with advancing liver disease and their health care providers from an ultimately futile effort to manage the complications of cirrhosis into a life-prolonging and life-enhancing intervention.
POPF after Distal Pancreatectomy
Minimally Invasive Versus Open Techniques
Despite advances in laparoscopic and robotic approaches, the vast majority of distal pancreatectomies continue to be performed via an open approach. Recent retrospective data have demonstrated that minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy is associated with decreased blood loss and shorter hospital stays than open pancreatectomy. A large recent study utilizing the Nationwide Inpatient Sample database suggested, first, that the minimally invasive approach is becoming more widely utilized, increasing from 2.4 to 7.3 % over a study period from 1998 to 2009. Second, that study reported that the minimally invasive approach was associated with decreased length of stay as well as decreased incidence of infectious complications, bleeding complications, and blood transfusions. This population-based study echoes conclusions drawn by a large multi-institutional study performed several years previously. Drawing on a combined patient sample of 667 patients, with 24 % initially attempted laparoscopically, the authors were able to demonstrate lower overall complication rate, decreased blood loss, and shorter hospital stays among patients undergoing laparoscopic approach via a multivariate analysis.
Notably, there was no significant difference in the pancreatic leak rate between the open and laparoscopic approaches, although there was a nonsignificant trend favoring the laparoscopic approach. More recently, the robotic approach has generated significant interest as a technique for performing distal pancreatectomy. Retrospective analysis has suggested that the robotic approach is well suited for pancreatectomy. Fistula rates, however, remain a concern. A retrospective review of patients undergoing robotic pancreatic operations included 83 patients who underwent distal pancreatectomy. About 27 % were identified as having a ISPGF type A pancreatic leak; 12 and 4.8 % were identified as having a grade B or C leak, respectively.
Identifying Risk Factors
For pancreaticoduodenectomy (PTD) , a fistula risk score has been recently developed that has been shown to be highly predictive of POPF. This score assigns points based on gland texture, gland pathology, duct diameter, and intraoperative blood loss. In general, high blood loss, soft gland texture, and smaller duct diameter confer increased risk of POPF, whereas pancreatic adenocarcinoma and pancreatitis as the indication for PTD confer protection for the development of pancreatic fistula versus other diagnoses. Also of note, higher fistula risk scores correlated with greater incidence of clinically relevant (ISGPF grade B or C) fistula. The adaptation of this risk score to patients undergoing distal pancreatectomy is yet to be validated; however, at least one published study indicates that this scoring system may have limitations in the setting of distal pancreatectomy. In that study, risk factors for pancreatic fistula after stapled gland transection in patients undergoing distal pancreatectomy were examined, and in a multivariate analysis, only the presence of diabetes and the use of a 4.1-mm staple cartridge were associated with increased risk of pancreatic fistula formation.
PhD THESIS (Ozimo Gama, MD)
COMPARATIVE STUDY BETWEEN THE SLEEVE GASTRECTOMY AND GASTRIC PLICATION IN OBESE RATS
INTRODUCTION: Obesity results from a prolonged imbalance between energy intake and energy expenditure. Studies with experimental models of bariatric surgery provided a fundamental contribution to the understanding of morphological and functional changes in obesity and after bariatric surgery. The restrictive bariatric surgery techniques currently used are gastric banding, sleeve gastrectomy and the gastric plication. The latter is considered an experimental technique and has therefore not yet enough studies that shed light on the postoperative rates of weight loss, surgical complications, resolution of comorbidities and the mechanisms responsible for weight loss. The aim of this study was to conduct a comparative study in rats with cafeteria diet-induced, between gastric plication and sleeve gastrectomy in variation late postoperative in body weight ,plasma biochemistry and gross and microscopic alterations gastric effects obesity.
MATERIAL AND METHOD: 28 male Wistar rats were randomized into three groups after induction period of obesity by cafeteria diet and underwent sleeve gastrectomy (GV group), gastric plication (GP group) and sham operation (control group). The animals were assessed daily postoperatively and the variables were recorded: (initial seven days, 14 and 21 days) body weight and presence of complications until day 21 postoperatively, when they were euthanized and evaluated: biochemistry (glucose, insulin, HDL, total cholesterol, triglycerides, AST, ALT and serum ghrelin), degree of intra-abdominal adhesions, resistance testing will air insufflation in the stomach and microscopic evaluation of the gastric mucosa.
RESULTS: In relation to body weight variation of animals GV group (initial weight: 318 ± 7.89 g / Final weight: 213 ± 9.03g) was significantly decreased (p<0.05) at 21 post-surgery day compared to the GP group (initial weight: 314.11 ± 20.79 g / final weight: 239.16 ± 14.71 g) and control (initial weight: 315.16±17.54g / final weight: 317.91±16.06 g). The animals in the GV group had a significant decrease (p<0.001) in blood glucose, insulin, transaminases, serum HDL and ghrelin compared to animals in GP and control. Was also significantly lower the burst pressure of the stomach in the GV group, the insufflation test the atmospheric air in relation to the GP and control groups. The GP and GV groups showed even different histological grade of inflammation
(subacute inflammation) and control group (chronic inflammation).
CONCLUSIONS: The sleeve gastrectomy is more effective than gastric plication weight loss, metabolic control and reduction of serum ghrelin in obesity rats, and presents the same rates of postoperative complications (adhesions, deaths and grade inflammation).
KEYWORDS: 1. Obesity; 2. Bariatric Surgery; 3.Wistar rats.
Critical View Of Safety
“The concept of the critical view was described in 1992 but the term CVS was introduced in 1995 in an analytical review of the emerging problem of biliary injury in laparoscopic cholecystectomy. CVS was conceived not as a way to do laparoscopic cholecystectomy but as a way to avoid biliary injury. To achieve this, what was needed was a secure method of identifying the two tubular structures that are divided in a cholecystectomy, i.e., the cystic duct and the cystic artery. CVS is an adoption of a technique of secure identification in open cholecystectomy in which both cystic structures are putatively identified after which the gallbladder is taken off the cystic plate so that it is hanging free and just attached by the two cystic structures. In laparoscopic surgery complete separation of the body of the gallbladder from the cystic plate makes clipping of the cystic structures difficult so for laparoscopy the requirement was that only the lower part of the gallbladder (about one-third) had to be separated from the cystic plate. The other two requirements are that the hepatocystic triangle is cleared of fat and fibrous tissue and that there are two and only two structures attached to the gallbladder and the latter requirements were the same as in the open technique. Not until all three elements of CVS are attained may the cystic structures be clipped and divided. Intraoperatively CVS should be confirmed in a “time-out” in which the 3 elements of CVS are demonstrated. Note again that CVS is not a method of dissection but a method of target identification akin to concepts used in safe hunting procedures. Several years after the CVS was introduced there did not seem to be a lessening of biliary injuries.
Operative notes of biliary injuries were collected and studied in an attempt to determine if CVS was failing to prevent injury. We found that the method of target identification that was failing was not CVS but the infundibular technique in which the cystic duct is identified by exposing the funnel shape where the infundibulum of the gallbladder joins the cystic duct. This seemed to occur most frequently under conditions of severe acute or chronic inflammation. Inflammatory fusion and contraction may cause juxtaposition or adherence of the common hepatic duct to the side of the gallbladder. When the infundibular technique of identification is used under these conditions a compelling visual deception that the common bile duct is the cystic duct may occur. CVS is much less susceptible to this deception because more exposure is needed to achieve CVS, and either the CVS is attained, by which time the anatomic situation is clarified, or operative conditions prevent attainment of CVS and one of several important “bail-out” strategies is used thus avoiding bile duct injury.
CVS must be considered as part of an overall schema of a culture of safety in cholecystectomy. When CVS cannot be attained there are several bailout strategies such a cholecystostomy or in the case of very severe inflammation discontinuation of the procedure and referral to a tertiary center for care. The most satisfactory bailout procedure is subtotal cholecystectomy of which there are two kinds. Subtotal fenestrating cholecystectomy removes the free wall of the gallbladder and ablates the mucosa but does not close the gallbladder remnant. Subtotal reconstituting cholecystectomy closes the gallbladder making a new smaller gallbladder. Such a gallbladder remnant is undesirable since it may become the site of new gallstone formation and recurrent symptoms . Both types may be done laparoscopically.”
Strasberg SM, Hertl M, Soper NJ. An analysis of the problem of biliary injury during laparoscopic cholecystectomy. J Am Coll Surg 1995;180:101-25.
BASICS OF SURGICAL TECHNIQUE
This e-book was designed to assist in learning related to experimental surgical technique, during the training of health professionals. Concisely and objectively, it presents the basic principles for professional practice in surgery and in basic techniques of the most relevant surgical procedures. It is directed to the training of general practitioners, through the technical base, illustrated in procedures described step by step, with reference to the routines of the discipline of Surgical Technique, at the Federal University of Maranhão. It is not a work aimed at surgical clinic nor does it presuppose a descriptive detail that definitively supplies the necessary information for the execution of procedures in patients. This book is specially dedicated to undergraduate students, to serve as a guide during the Experimental Surgical Technique. It was designed and structured in order to facilitate theoretical study and encourage practical learning. Assisting your training, we seek professionals better prepared for health care.
Good Studies.
Laparoscopic Liver Resection
INTRODUCTION
Laparoscopic hepatic resection is an emerging option in the field of hepatic surgery. With almost 3000 laparoscopic hepatic resections reported in the literature for benign and malignant tumors, with a combined mortality of 0.3% and morbidity of 10.5%, there will be an increasing demand for minimally invasive liver surgery. Multiple series have been published on laparoscopic liver resections; however, no randomized controlled trial has been reported that compares laparoscopic with open liver resection. Large series, meta-analyses, and reviews have thus far attested to the feasibility and safety of minimally invasive hepatic surgery for benign and malignant lesions.
THECNICAL ASPECTS
The conversion rate from a laparoscopic approach to an open procedure was 4.1%. The most common type of laparoscopic liver resection performed is a wedge resection or segmentectomy (45%), followed by left lateral sectionectomy (20%). Major anatomic hepatectomies are still less frequently performed: right hepatectomy (9%) and left hepatectomy (7%). Cumulative morbidity and mortality was 10.5% and 0.3%.
BENEFITS OF LAPAROSCOPIC APPROACH
More importantly, almost all the studies comparing laparoscopic with open liver resection consistently showed a significant earlier discharge to home after laparoscopic liver resection. Lengths of stay were variable based on the country of origin of the studies but were consistently shorter for laparoscopic liver resection. Three studies published in the United States presented a length of stay of 1.9 to 4.0 days after laparoscopic liver resection. Studies from Europe showed an average length of stay of 3.5 to 10 days whereas those from Asia reported an average of length of stay of 4 to 20 days after laparoscopic liver resection.
COST ANALYSIS
Vanounou and colleagues used deviation-based cost modeling to compare the costs of laparoscopic with open left lateral sectionectomy at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. They compared 29 laparoscopic with 40 open cases and showed that patients who underwent the laparoscopic approach faired more favorably with a shorter length of stay (3 vs 5 days, P<.0001), significantly less postoperative morbidity (P 5 .001), and a weighted-average median cost savings of $1527 to $2939 per patient compared with patients who underwent open left lateral sectionectomy.
SURGICAL MARGINS
Initial concerns about the adequacy of surgical margins and possible tumor seeding prevented the widespread adoption of laparoscopic resection approaches for liver cancers. In comparison studies, there were no differences in margin-free resections between laparoscopic and open liver resection. In addition, no incidence of port-site recurrence or tumor seeding has been reported. With more than 3000 cases of minimally invasive hepatic resection reported in the literature (and no documentation of any significant port-site or peritoneal seeding), the authors conclude that this concern should not prevent surgeons from accepting a laparoscopic approach.
SURVIVAL OUTCOMES
There were no significant differences in overall survival in the 13 studies that compared laparoscopic liver resection with open liver resection for cancer. For example, Cai and colleagues showed that the 1-, 3-, and 5-year survival rates after laparoscopic resection of HCC were 95.4%, 67.5%, and 56.2% versus 100%, 73.8%, and 53.8% for open resection. For resection of colorectal cancer liver metastasis, Ito and colleagues showed a 3-year survival of 72% after laparoscopic liver resection and 56% after open liver resection whereas Castaing and colleagues51 showed a 5-year survival of 64% after laparoscopic liver resection versus 56% after open liver resection.
CONCLUSION
Compared with open liver resections, laparoscopic liver resections are associated with less blood loss, less pain medication requirement, and shorter length of hospital stay. A randomized controlled clinical trial is the best method to compare laparoscopic with open liver resection; however, such a trial may be difficult to conduct because patients are unlikely to subject themselves to an open procedure when a minimally invasive approach has been shown feasible and safe in experienced hands. In addition, many patients would have to be accrued to detect a difference in complications that occur infrequently. Short of a large randomized clinical trial, meta-analysis and matched comparisons provide the next best option to compare laparoscopic with open liver resection. For laparoscopic resection of HCC or colorectal cancer metastases, there has been no difference in 5-year overall survival compared with open hepatic resection. In addition, from a financial standpoint, the minimally invasive approach to liver resection may be associated with higher operating room costs; however, the total hospital costs were offset or improved due to the associated shorter length of hospital stay with the minimally invasive approach.
Medically-Necessary, Time Sensitive: (MeNTS) Score
Operating During The COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic
“At the University of Chicago, members of the Department of Surgery decided to investigate this issue more precisely. As stay-at-home restrictions in some states are easing, and as non-emergency medical care is being reconsidered, how does one possibly triage the thousands upon thousands of patients whose surgeries were postponed? Instead of the term “elective,” the University of Chicago’s Department of Surgery chose the phrase “Medically-Necessary, Time Sensitive” (MeNTS). This concept can be utilized to better assess the acuity and safety when determining which patients can get to the operating room in as high benefit/low risk manner as possible. And unlike in any recent time in history, risks to healthcare staff as well as risks to the patient from healthcare staff, are now thrown into the equation. The work was published in the April issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.
On March 17, 2020, the American College of Surgeons recommended that all “elective” surgeries be canceled indefinitely. These guidelines were published, stating that only patients with “high acuity” surgical issues, which would include aggressive cancers and severely symptomatic disease, should proceed. Based on the Elective Surgery Acuity Scale (ESAS), most hospitals were strongly encouraged to cancel any surgery that was not high acuity, including slow-growing cancers, orthopedic and spine surgeries, airway surgeries, and any other surgeries for non-cancerous tumors. Heart surgeries for stable cardiac issues were also put on hold. Patients and surgeons waited. Some patients did, indeed undergo non-Covid-19-related surgeries. But most did not. Redeployment is gradually turning to re-entry.
The re-entry process for non-urgent (yet necessary) surgeries is a complicated one. Decisions and timing, based on a given hospital’s number and severity of Covid-19 patients, combined with a given city or state’s current and projected number of Covid-19 cases, how sick those patients will be, and whether or not a second surge may come, involves a fair amount of guesswork. As we have all seen, data manipulation has become a daily sparring match in many arenas. The authors of the study created an objective surgical risk scoring system, in order to help hospitals across this country, as well as others across the world, better identify appropriate timing regarding which surgeries can go ahead sooner rather than later, and why. They factored several variables into their equation, to account for the multiple potential barriers to care, including health and safety of hospital personnel. They created scoring systems based on three factors: Procedure, Disease and Patient Issues.
CALCULATE MeNTS SCORE HERE
The authors of the study created an objective surgical risk scoring system, in order to help hospitals across this country, as well as others across the world, better identify appropriate timing regarding which surgeries can go ahead sooner rather than later, and why. They factored several variables into their equation, to account for the multiple potential barriers to care, including health and safety of hospital personnel. Each patient would receive an overall conglomerate score, based on all of these factors, with the lower risks giving them more favorable scores to proceed with surgery soon, and the higher risks giving patients a higher score, or higher risk regarding proceeding with surgery, meaning it may be safest, for now, to wait.
Dr. Jeffrey Matthews, senior author of the paper, and Department Chair at the University of Chicago, stated that this model is reproducible across hospital systems, in urban, rural, and academic settings. And in the event of potential unpredictable surges of Covid-19 cases, the scoring system “helps prioritize cases not only from the procedure/disease standpoint but also from the pandemic standpoint with respect to available hospital resources such as PPE, blood, ICU beds, and [regular hospital] beds.”
The scoring system is extremely new, and the coming weeks will reveal how patients, surgeons and hospitals are faring as patients without life-and-death emergencies and/or Covid-19 complications gradually begin filling the operating rooms and hospital beds. In addition, and perhaps just as important, the study authors note that creating systems whereby healthcare resources, safety, and impact on outcomes need to be considered more carefully for each patient intervention, the larger impact of each intervention on public health will be better understood: not only for today’s pandemic, but also in future, as yet unknown, global events.”
Source: Nina Shapiro, 2020
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Covid-19 and Digestive Surgery
The current world Covid-19 pandemic has been the most discussed topic in the media and scientific journals. Fear, uncertainty, and lack of knowledge about the disease may be the significant factors that justify such reality. It has been known that the disease presents with a rapidly spreading, it is significantly more severe among the elderly, and it has a substantial global socioeconomic impact. Besides the challenges associated with the unknown, there are other factors, such as the deluge of information. In this regard, the high number of scientific publications, encompassing in vitro, case studies, observational and randomized clinical studies, and even systematic reviews add up to the uncertainty. Such a situation is even worse when considering that most healthcare professionals lack adequate knowledge to critically appraise the scientific method, something that has been previously addressed by some authors. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that expert societies supported by data provided by the World Health Organization and the National Health Department take the lead in spreading trustworthy and reliable information.
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Laparoscopic JEJUNOSTOMY
Many oncological patients with upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract tumours, apart from other symptoms, are malnourished or cachectic at the time of presentation. In these patients feeding plays a crucial role, including as part of palliative treatment. Many studies have proved the benefits of enteral feeding over parenteral if feasible. Depending on the tumour’s location and clinical stage there are several options of enteral feeding aids available. Since the introduction of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) and its relatively easy application in most patients, older techniques such as open gastrostomy or jejunostomy have rather few indications.
The majority of non-PEG techniques are used in patients with upper digestive tract, head and neck tumours or trauma that renders the PEG technique unfeasible or unsafe for the patient. In these patients, especially with advanced disease requiring neoadjuvant chemotherapy or palliative treatment, open gastrostomy and jejunostomy were the only options of enteral access. Since the first report of laparoscopic jejunostomy by O’Regan et al. in 1990 there have been several publications presenting techniques and outcomes of laparoscopic feeding jejunostomy. Laparoscopic jejunostomy can accompany staging or diagnostic laparoscopy for upper GI malignancy when the disease appears advanced, hence avoiding additional anaesthesia and an operation in the near future.
In this video the author describe the technique of laparoscopic feeding jejunostomy applied during the staging laparoscopy in patient with advanced upper gastrointestinal tract cancer with co-morbid cachexy, requiring enteral feeding and neoadjuvant chemotherapy.
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Traqueostomia
Basicamente, existem quatro situações que indicam a realização de traqueostomia: prevenção de lesões laringotraqueais pela intubação translaríngea prolongada; desobstrução da via aérea superior, em casos de tumores, corpo estranho ou infecção; acesso à via aérea inferior para aspiração e remoção de secreções; e aquisição de via aérea estável em paciente que necessita de suporte ventilatório prolongado.
A substituição do tubo endotraqueal pela cânula de traqueostomia ainda acrescenta benefícios, proporcionando conforto e segurança do paciente. Algumas sociedades americanas sugerem que a traqueostomia deva ser sempre considerada para pacientes que necessitarão de ventilação mecânica prolongada, ou seja, por mais de 14 dias.
Muitas vezes, a decisão de se realizar uma traqueostomia é tomada pelo julgamento clínico de médicos, principalmente aqueles que trabalham em unidades de terapia intensiva. Isso envolve a análise de múltiplos fatores, tais como as características de cada paciente, o motivo pelo qual ocorreu a intubação, doenças associadas, resposta ao trata-mento e prognóstico individualizado. Embora haja uma tendência de indicação de traqueostomia precoce em pacientes neurocríticos e com trauma grave.
Benefícios Clínicos:
- Diminuição do trabalho respiratório
- Melhora da aspiração das vias aéreas
- Permitir a fonação
- Permitir a alimentação por via oral
- Menor necessidade de sedação
- Redução do risco de pneumonia associada à ventilação
mecânica - Diminuição do tempo de ventilação mecânica
- Diminuição do tempo de internação em unidades de terapia
intensiva - Redução da mortalidade
Pyogenic Liver ABSCESS
Pyogenic liver abscess (PLA), a suppurating infection of the hepatic parenchyma, remains a mortality associated condition and nowadays develops as a complication of biliary tract diseases for about 40% of cases. Recently, the etiologies of PLA have shifted from intra-abdominal infections such as acute appendicitis and trauma to pathologic conditions of the biliary tract; however, up to 60% of patients with PLA have no clear risk factors and these cases are called cryptogenic.
The incidence of PLA varies from 8 to 22 patients per 1,000,000 people belonging to a geographical area with substantially higher rates having been reported in Taiwan. Early diagnosis and treatment is a crucial step in the management of these patients, since the presentation may be subtle and not specific (abdominal pain, fever, nausea, and vomiting), so currently constitutes a challenge for physicians: a high index of suspicion is the cornerstone of prevention for misdiagnosis and improvement of prognosis.
In recent decades, combined antibiotic therapy and percutaneous drainage have become the first-line treatment in most cases and has greatly improved patients’ prognosis: the mortality rate has dropped from 70% to 5%. In terms of causative pathogens, bacteria most frequently associated with PLA are Escherichia coli, Enterobacteriaceae, anaerobes, and other members of the gastrointestinal flora. Over the past 2 decades Klebsiella pneumoniae has been emerging as the predominant pathogen responsible for 50% to 90% of PLA in the Asian population and it has been reported with increasing frequency in South Africa, Europe, and the United States.
Because such experiences have not yet been reported in Maranhão, we reviewed the cases of PLA seen at our institution and the present study is a retrospective analysis of demographic characteristics, etiological factors, presentation patterns, microbiological etiology, and the treatment of PLA cases which were presented in an Brazilian hospital over a 25-year-period.
Ebook: Princípios da Anatomia Topográfica
Os conceitos fundamentais da Anatomia Topográfica Humana através do estudo das regiões anatômicas com maior relevância Médico-Cirúrgica. Agora com amplo material multimídia disponibilizado através de acesso on-line dentro do livro e com isso creditamos que este trabalho será útil como mais uma ferramenta didática na preparação profissional dos estudantes de Medicina.
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Fale Conosco
Ischaemic Preconditioning applied to LIVER SURGERY
- INTRODUCTION
The absence of oxygen and nutrients during ischaemia affects all tissues with aerobic metabolism. Ischaemia of these tissues creates a condition which upon the restoration of circulation results in further inflammation and oxidative damage (reperfusion injury). Restoration of blood flow to an ischaemic organ is essential to prevent irreversible tissue injury, however reperfusion of the organ or tissues may result in a local and systemic inflammatory response augmenting tissue injury in excess of that produced by ischaemia alone. This process of organ damage with ischaemia being exacerbated by reperfusion is called ischaemia-reperfusion (IR). Regardless of the disease process, severity of IR injury depends on the length of ischaemic time as well as size and pre-ischaemic condition of the affected tissue. The liver is the largest solid organ in the body, hence liver IR injury can have profound local and systemic consequences, particularly in those with pre-existing liver disease. Liver IR injury is common following liver surgery and transplantation and remains the main cause of morbidity and mortality.
2. AETIOLOGY
The liver has a dual blood supply from the hepatic artery (20%) and the portal vein (80%). A temporary reduction in blood supply to the liver causes IR injury. This can be due to a systemic reduction or local cessation and restoration of blood flow. Liver resections are performed for primary or secondary tumours of the liver and carry a substantial risk of bleeding especially in patients with chronic liver disease. Significant blood loss is associated with increased transfusion requirements, tumour recurrence, complications and increased morbidity and mortality. Several methods of hepatic vascular control have been described in order to minimise blood loss during elective liver resection. The simplest and most common method is inflow occlusion by applying a tape or vascular clamp across the hepatoduodenal ligament (Pringle Manoeuvre). This occludes both the arterial and portal vein inflow to the liver and leads to a period of warm ischaemia (37 °C) to the liver parenchyma resulting in ‘warm’ IR injury when the temporary inflow occlusion is relieved. In major liver surgery, extensive mobilisation of the liver itself without inflow occlusion results in a significant reduction in hepatic oxygenation.
3. PATOPHYSIOLOGY and RISK FACTORS
A complex cellular and molecular network of hepatocytes, Kupffer cells, liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSEC), leukocytes and cytokines play a role in the pathogenesis of IR injury. In general, both warm and cold ischaemia share similar mechanisms of injury. Hepatocyte injury is a predominant feature of warm ischaemia, whilst endothelial cells are more susceptible to cold ischaemic injury. There are currently no proven treatments for liver IR injury. Understanding this complex network is essential in developing therapeutic strategies in prevention and treatment of IR injury. Identifying risk factors for IR injury are extremely important in patient selection for liver surgery and transplantation. The main factors are the donor or patient age, the duration of organ ischaemia, presence or absence of liver steatosis and in transplantation whether the donor organ has been retrieved from a brain dead or cardiac death donor.
4. PREVENTION and TREATMENT
There is currently no accepted treatment for liver IR injury. Several pharmacological agents and surgical techniques have been beneficial in reducing markers of hepatocyte injury in experimental liver IR, however, they are yet to show clinical benefit in human trials. The following is an outline of current and future strategies which may be effective in reducing the detrimental effects of liver IR injury in liver surgery and transplantation.
4.1 SURGICAL STRATEGIES
Inflow occlusion or portal triad clamping (PTC) can be continuous or intermittent; alternating between short periods of inflow occlusion and reperfusion. Intermittent clamping (IC) increases parenchymal tolerance to ischaemia. Hence, prolonged continuous inflow occlusion rather than short intermittent periods results in greater degree of post-operative liver dysfunction. IC permits longer total ischaemia times for more complex resections. Alternating between 15 min of inflow occlusion and 5 min reperfusion cycles can be performed safely for up to 120 min total ischaemia time. There is a potential risk of increased blood loss during the periods of no inflow occlusion. However, these intervals provide an opportunity for the surgeon to check for haemostasis and control small bleeding areas from the cut surface of the liver. The optimal IC cycle times are not clear, although intermittent cycles of up to 30 min inflow occlusion have also been reported with no increase in morbidity, blood loss or liver dysfunction compared to 15 min cycles. IC is particularly beneficial in reducing post-operative liver dysfunction in patients with liver cirrhosis or steatosis.
In liver surgery, IPC ( Ischaemic Preconditioning) involves a short period of ischaemia (10 min) and reperfusion (10 min) intraoperatively by portal triad clamping prior to parenchymal transection during which a longer continuous inflow occlusion is applied to minimise blood loss. It allows continuous ischaemia times of up to 40 min without significant liver dysfunction. However, the protective effect of IPC decreases with increasing age above 60 years old and compared to IC it is less effective in steatotic livers. Moreover, IPC may impair liver regeneration capacity and may not be tolerated by the small remnant liver in those with more complex and extensive liver resections increasing the risk of post-operative hepatic insufficiency.
In order to avoid direct ischaemic insult to the liver by inflow occlusion, remote ischaemic preconditioning (RIPC) has been used. RIPC involves preconditioning a remote organ prior to ischaemia of the target organ. It has been shown to be reduce warm IR injury to the liver in experimental studies. A recent pilot randomised trial of RIPC in patients undergoing major liver resection for colorectal liver metastasis used a tourniquet applied to the right thigh with 10 min cycles of inflation-deflation to induce IR injury to the leg for 60 min. This was performed after general anaesthesia prior to skin incision. A reduction in post-operative transaminases and improved liver function was shown without the use of liver inflow occlusion. These results are promising but require validation in a larger trial addressing clinical outcomes.
5. FUTURE PERSPECTIVES
Hepatic IR injury remains the main cause of morbidity and mortality in liver surgery and transplantation. Despite over two decades of research in this area, therapeutic options to treat or prevent liver IR are limited. This is primarily due to the difficulties in translation of promising agents into human clinical studies. Recent advances in our understanding of the immunological responses and endothelial dysfunction in the pathogenesis of liver IR injury may pave the way for the development of new and more effective and targeted pharmacological agents.
Femoral Hernia REPAIR
Femoral hernia is not as common as inguinal hernia. It is often associated with incarceration or strangulation, resulting in peritonitis and mortality.
ANATOMY
The pelvicrural interval (the opening from the abdomen to the thigh) is divided into two spaces: a lateral space, the lacuna musculosa, through which the iliopsoas muscles pass; and a medial space, the lacuna vasculosa, for the femoral vessels. The external iliac vessels run along the anterior surface of the iliopsoas muscle in the pelvis, pass between the iliopubic tract and Cooper’s ligament, and finally course beneath the inguinal ligament to become the femoral vessels. Where the external iliac vessels run down into the lacuna vasculosa, transversalis fascia covers the vessels to form the femoral sheath. It extends approximately 4 cm caudally and ends as the adventitia of the femoral vessels. The medial compartment of the femoral sheath is called the femoral canal, which is ordinarily less than 2 cm in diameter and contains lymphatic vessels and glands. The true opening of the femoral canal is a musculoaponeurotic ring, consisting of Cooper’s ligament inferiorly, the femoral vein laterally, and iliopubic tract superiorly and medially. In the past, the medial border of the femoral ring was for the lacunar ligament. The lacunar ligament is an attachment of the inguinal ligament to the pubic bone, however, and lies in the outer layer of the transversalis fascia.
McVay demonstrated that the medial boundary of the femoral ring is the lateral edge of the aponeurosis of the insertion of the transversus abdominis muscle with transversalis fascia onto the pectin of the pubis, not the lacunar ligament. Condon also demonstrated that the iliopubic tract bridges the femoral canal and then curves posteriorly and inferiorly, its fibers spreading fanwise to insert adjacent to Cooper’s ligament into a broad area of the superior ramus of the pubis. Thus, the true inner ring of the femoral canal is bounded by the iliopubic tract anteriorly and medially, and by Cooper’s ligament posteriorly. If a surgeon incises the inguinal ligament in a tightly incarcerated femoral hernia, he or she will find that the hernia cannot be reduced because of the more deeply placed ring. The distal orifice has a rigid boundary—surrounded by the lacunar ligament medially; the inguinal ligament superiorly; and the fascia of the pectineal muscle—and is usually less than 1 cm in diameter. The rigidity of these structures is the reason why strangulation often occurs in femoral hernias.
ETIOLOGY
Currently, the ‘‘acquired’’ theory is widely accepted; however, the true cause of femoral hernia is not known. McVay demonstrated that the width of the femoral ring, which is determined by the length of the fanwise insertion of the iliopubic tract to Cooper’ ligament, is the main etiologic factor of the femoral hernia. Considering that the femoral hernia is very rare in children and most common in elderly women, however, McVay’s concept cannot be the only reason for the occurrence of femoral hernia. Nyhus noted the presence of a relatively large femoral defect without an accompanying femoral hernia during the preperitoneal approach. This may be caused by the acquired weakness of the transversalis fascia and a consequent predisposition to the development of the femoral hernia.
INCIDENCE
The ratio of femoral hernia relative to all groin hernias is reported to be 2% to 8% in adults . Femoral hernias are very rare in children, and most commonly observed between the ages of 40 and 70. The peak distribution is in the 50s, with a slight decrease in the 60s and 70s. As for sex distribution, femoral hernia is 4 to 5 times more common in female than in male; however, there are some reports that it is more common in men than in women. A right-sided presentation is more common than left, but the reason is not known.
TREATMENT
Finally, femoral hernia is usually thought of as requiring emergency surgical treatment. Only 30% of our cases were treated as emergency operations, however, whereas 70% were elective. Unless patients complain of severe abdominal pain or ileus, surgeons need not perform emergency operations. In summary, the mesh plug hernia repair for femoral hernia has resulted in a reduced recurrence rate, shortened hospital stay, and a low rate of postoperative complications.
Perioperative Fluid Management
In the setting of a normal ejection fraction, fluid is only administered when the expectation is that cardiac output will increase, and vasopressors are utilized if the aforementioned devices show fluid will not increase cardiac output. Excess fluid in certain general surgical cases can cause ileus and bowel edema, and in cardiac cases, it can cause hemodilution. Patients randomized to restricted and liberal fluid resuscitation strategies found a clear linear relationship between total fluids administered (and weight gain) and complications following colorectal surgery including pulmonary edema and tissue-healing complications. Further multiple studies exist demonstrating fewer complications with normovolemia than with liberal strategies of fluid resuscitation.
It must be understood that goal-directed therapy does, in no way, mean reduction in fluid administration. For some procedures, it may be necessary to administer more than anticipated fluid volumes (orthopedics), while for others, the opposite may be true (abdominal). Normovolemia is important to maintain perfusion without volume overload. Thus, the idea behind goaldirected therapy is to maintain zero fluid balance coupled with minimal weight gain or loss. Hypovolemia is associated with reduced circulating blood volume, decreased renal perfusion, altered coagulation, microcirculation compromise, and endothelial dysfunction, among other processes. Hypervolemia is associated with splanchnic edema, decreased pulmonary gas exchange secondary to pulmonary edema, impaired wound healing, anastomotic dehiscence, decreased mobility, altered coagulation, and endothelial dysfunction, amidst others processes.
Classroom: Perioperative Medicine
From a recent Cochrane review, there is no evidence that colloids are superior to crystalloid for resuscitation in patients. Therefore, crystalloid fluids should generally be the primary intravenous fluid during the perioperative course. In cardiac surgery, the utilization of 0.9% normal saline solution was associated with hyperchloremia and poor postoperative outcomes, including higher length of stay and increased mortality.118 Further, a more balanced crystalloid, such as Plasma-Lyte, was associated with improved outcomes in 22,851 surgical patients. In this study, there was a 2.05 odds ratio predictor of mortality with normal saline. Other complications such as acute kidney injury, gastrointestinal complications, major hemorrhage, and major infection were also increased in the group of
patients that were hyperchloremic after normal saline administration. Based on such evidence, it would seem prudent to proceed with a more balanced solution, such as PlasmaLyte, to reduce complications.
Patient SAFETY
Organ specialization and case load have been a big issue during recent years and for most cancers a direct relation between high volume and a better outcome has been demonstrated by reviewing the recent literature. Concentration in clinics of high-risk procedures with a certain volume (procedures such as esophagectomy, pancreatectomy and hepatic resection) might prevent many postoperative deaths per year. Also, other procedures such as thyroidectomy and colon resections have shown the same tendency to a lesser extent. Reduction of postoperative mortality by 5% is in general as effective as toxic adjuvant treatment and should have high priority in achieving the highest quality in cancer surgery.
Not only can a reduction in morbidity and mortality be achieved but also a better functional and even financial outcome is possible. Sometimes too much attention has been focused on numbers per year, since even smaller hospitals with dedicated teams can achieve good results. It is very likely that not only volume but also training and specialization result in a better outcome. The setting of an absolute number of cases is not very productive and diverts attention from organized multidisciplinary mee-tings, appropriate infrastructure and availability of modern techniques.
The focus of interest should be directed more towards analyzing and optimizing the whole process of diagnosis and treatment, since this whole process can put the patient at severe risk, especially during the in-patient period. Avoidance of mistakes has received a lot of attention during recent years. It has resulted in interest in patient safety as a concept. Since the publication of the report To Err is Human issued by the Institute of Medicine the approach to errors has changed.
Individuals can make mistakes but a system approach concentrates on the conditions under which individuals work and tries to build defenses to overt or mitigate the effects of mistakes. This is very well visualized by the Swiss cheese model. Several layers of defense, each with its own holes, are put around a procedure. Both active failures and latent conditions cause holes in each layer. The usual way of thinking is to close the holes in the last layer of defense; however, redesigning the process and the closing of a hole in a much earlier layer will probably be more effective.
Root cause analysis is the way to go back in the process and try to identify weak points in the procedure. A good example is the incorrect position of a colostomy after an abdominoperineal resection. It is easy to blame the resident for not selecting the correct position during surgery or even marking the wrong spot the day before the operation. A better solution would be either proper training of the junior or having the right spot tattooed during the outpatient clinic by a stoma therapist.
Marking of the correct part and site of the body has become a safety measure and the patient should be instructed to ask for this procedure for there own safety. It is important to get rid of the ‘blame and shame’ culture and introduce a more open environment in which it is possible to report on near misses and mistakes. The safety climate in a surgical department can be measured in a validated way and is an essential part of a culture in which patient safety can flourish. Reduction of complications in the direct postoperative period after a surgical procedure has many aspects not related to the cancer surgery itself, but to the invasive nature of the intervention.
Great attention to every detail during the preoperative work-up and clinical period may result in the reduction of adverse events. This is what is termed ‘the first time at risk’ above. There are also examples of actions in optimizing results that are more cancer specific. For instance the use of techniques stimulating wound healing after an abdominoperineal resection such as an omentoplasty or rectal abdominis flap may prevent a delay in adjuvant systemic treatment for rectal cancer.
Careful attention towards wound healing in sarcoma will avoid postponement of the necessary adjuvant radiotherapy. Omitting a computer scan with iodine-containing contrast in the diagnostic work-up for a thyroid cancer makes postoperative radioactive treatment with iodine possible earlier resulting in a possible better outcome. Harvesting a sufficient number of lymph nodes in colon cancer may avoid discussions about the indication for adjuvant chemotherapy.
Most of the examples for patient safety in the clinical period are in relation to optimal use of multimodality treatment or to effects of surgery in general. Sometimes there has to be a balanced risk of the acceptance with a more extensive surgical procedure of a higher morbidity to achieve a better long-term cancer result. The reverse is also possible when a good short-term outcome of a local excision in rectal cancer has to be counterbalanced by a higher local recurrence rate. Quality assurance for all the participating disciplines (both diagnostic and therapeutic) is a key element in the set up of clinical prospective randomized trials.
Principles of Surgical Resection of Hepatocellular Carcinoma
INTRODUCTION
There has been significant improvement in the perioperative results following liver resection, mainly due to techniques that help reduce blood loss during the operation. Extent of liver resection required in HCC for optimal oncologic results is still controversial. On this basis, the rationale for anatomically removing the entire segment or lobe bearing the tumor, would be to remove undetectable tumor metastases along with the primary tumor.
SIZE OF TUMOR VERSUS TUMOR FREE-MARGIN
Several retrospective studies and meta-analyses have shown that anatomical resections are safe in patients with HCC and liver dysfunction, and may offer a survival benefit. It should be noted, that most studies are biased, as non-anatomical resections are more commonly performed in patients with more advanced liver disease, which affects both recurrence and survival. It therefore remains unclear whether anatomical resections have a true long-term survival benefit in patients with HCC. Some authors have suggested that anatomical resections may provide a survival benefit in tumors between 2 and 5 cm. The rational is that smaller tumors rarely involve portal structures, and in larger tumors presence of macrovascular invasion and satellite nodules would offset the effect of aggressive surgical approach. Another important predictor of local recurrence is margin status. Generally, a tumor-free margin of 1 cm is considered necessary for optimal oncologic results. A prospective randomized trial on 169 patients with solitary HCC demonstrated that a resection margin aiming at 2 cm, safely decreased recurrence rate and improved long-term survival, when compared to a resection margin aiming at 1 cm. Therefore, wide resection margins of 2 cm is recommended, provided patient safety is not compromised.
THECNICAL ASPECTS
Intraoperative ultrasound (IOUS) is an extremely important tool when performing liver resections, specifically for patients with HCC and compromised liver function. IOUS allows for localization of the primary tumor, detection of additional tumors, satellite nodules, tumor thrombus, and define relationship with bilio-vascular structures within the liver. Finally, intraoperative US-guided injection of dye, such as methylene-blue, to portal branches can clearly define the margins of the segment supplied by the portal branch and facilitate safe anatomical resection.
The anterior approach to liver resection is a technique aimed at limiting tumor manipulation to avoid tumoral dissemination, decrease potential for blood loss caused by avulsion of hepatic veins, and decrease ischemia of the remnant liver caused by rotation of the hepatoduodenal ligament. This technique is described for large HCCs located in the right lobe, and was shown in a prospective, randomized trial to reduce frequency of massive bleeding, number of patients requiring blood transfusions, and improve overall survival in this setting. This approach can be challenging, and can be facilitated by the use of the hanging maneuver.
Multiple studies have demonstrated that blood loss and blood transfusion administration are significantly associated with both short-term perioperative, and long-term oncological results in patients undergoing resection for HCC. This has led surgeons to focus on limiting operative blood loss as a major objective in liver resection. Transfusion rates of <20 % are expected in most experienced liver surgery centers. Inflow occlusion, by the use of the Pringle Maneuver represents the most commonly performed method to limit blood loss. Cirrhotic patients can tolerate total clamping time of up to 90 min, and the benefit of reduced blood loss outweighs the risks of inflow occlusion, as long as ischemia periods of 15 min are separated by at least 5 min of reperfusion. Total ischemia time of above 120 min may be associated with postoperative liver dysfunction. Additional techniques aimed at reducing blood loss include total vascular isolation, by occluding the inferior vena cava (IVC) above and below the liver, however, the hemodynamic results of IVC occlusion may be significant, and this technique has a role mainly in tumors that are adjacent to the IVC or hepatic veins.
Anesthesiologists need to assure central venous pressure is low (below 5 mmHg) by limiting fluid administration, and use of diuretics, even at the expense 470 N. Lubezky et al. of low systemic pressure and use of inotropes. After completion of the resection, large amount of crystalloids can be administered to replenish losses during parenchymal dissection.
LAPAROSCOPIC RESECTIONS
Laparoscopic liver resections were shown to provide benefits of reduced surgical trauma, including a reduction in postoperative pain, incision-related morbidity, and shorten hospital stay. Some studies have demonstrated reduced operative bleeding with laparoscopy, attributed to the increased intra-abdominal pressure which reduces bleeding from the low-pressured hepatic veins. Additional potential benefits include a decrease in postoperative ascites and ascites-related wound complications, and fewer postoperative adhesions, which may be important in patients undergoing salvage liver transplantation. There has been a delay with the use of laparoscopy in the setting of liver cirrhosis, due to difficulties with hemostasis in the resection planes, and concerns for possible reduction of portal flow secondary to increased intraabdominal pressure. However, several recent studies have suggested that laparoscopic resection of HCC in patients with cirrhosis is safe and provides improved outcomes when compared to open resections.
Resections of small HCCs in anterior or left lateral segments are most amenable for laparoscopic resections. Larger resections, and resection of posterior-sector tumors are more challenging and should only be performed by very experienced surgeons. Long-term oncological outcomes of laparoscopic resections was shown to be equivalent to open resections on retrospective studies , but prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings. In recent years, robotic-assisted liver resections are being explored. Feasibility and safety of robotic-assisted surgery for HCC has been demonstrated in small non-randomized studies, but more experience is needed, and long-term oncologic results need to be studied, before widespread use of this technique will be recommended.
ALPPS: Associating Liver Partition with Portal vein ligation for Staged hepatectomy
The pre-operative options for inducing atrophy of the resected part and hypertrophy of the FLR, mainly PVE, were described earlier. Associating Liver Partition with Portal vein ligation for Staged hepatectomy (ALPPS) is another surgical option aimed to induce rapid hypertrophy of the FLR in patients with HCC. This technique involves a 2-stage procedure. In the first stage splitting of the liver along the resection plane and ligation of the portal vein is performed, and in the second stage, performed at least 2 weeks following the first stage, completion of the resection is performed. Patient safety is a major concern, and some studies have reported increased morbidity and mortality with the procedure. Few reports exist of this procedure in the setting of liver cirrhosis. Currently, the role of ALPPS in the setting of HCC and liver dysfunction needs to be better delineated before more widespread use is recommended.
Clinical Anatomy of the Liver
Understanding the intrahepatic anatomy is crucial to perform liver resections and, in particular, parenchymal-sparing resections. The Couinaud’s liver segmentation system is based on the identification of the three hepatic veins and the plane passing by the portal vein bifurcation. Nowadays, Couinaud’s classification is widely used clinically, because it is best adapted for surgery and has become essential in localizing and monitoring various intrahepatic lesions.
As above-mentioned, Couinaud’s portal segmentation is entirely different from the historically defined two hemilivers based on external landmarks and is also partially different from Healey’s arteriobiliary segmen-tation. According to Couinaud’s descriptions, the right, middle and left hepatic veins divide the liver into four sectors (called suprahepatic segmentation by Couinaud), each of which is supplied by a portal pedicle that consists of a branch of the hepatic artery, portal vein and bile duct.
The middle hepatic vein runs in the main portal scissura (midplane of the liver) which separates the liver into the right and the left hemiliver. The main portal scissura moves forward from the gallbladder fossa anteriorly to the left of the suprahepatic IVC posteriorly, and in clinical practice, these external landmarks may be used as external demarcation line between the functional right and left hemiliver. Both the right and left hemilivers are further separated into sectors by the right and left portal scissura holding the right and left hepatic veins separately.
In the right hemiliver, the right portal scissura divides the right hemiliver into the right anterior sector (right paramedian sector) and the right posterior sector (right lateral sector). It is noteworthy that in the right hemiliver, Healey’s liver sections which he defined as segments are accurately the same as Couinaud’s sectors. In the left hemiliver, the left portal scissura divides the left liver into the anterior sector (left medial sector or left paramedian sector) and the posterior sector (left posterior sector or left lateral sector).
The anterior sector consists of segments 4 and 3, and the posterior sector only includes segment 2. However, in the left hemiliver, Healey’s liver sections which he defined as segments are not the same as Couinaud’s sectors. In the right hemiliver, as Healey’s sections are precisely the same as Couinaud’s sectors, the right anterior sector (section) can be further subdivided into segment 8 superiorly and segment 5 inferiorly. The right posterior sector (Healey’s section) is also further subdivided into segment 7 superiorly and segment 6 inferiorly.
In the left hemiliver, Healey’s sections are not the same as Couinaud’s sectors. The Healey’s left medial section locates between the main portal scissura and the falciform ligament, and it is comprised only of segment 4, which can further be subdivided into segment 4A superiorly and segment 4B inferiorly, while the Healey’s left lateral section is comprised of segments 2 and 3, being divided by the left hepatic vein which runs in the left portal scissura.
For the Couinaud’s left medial sector, it is comprised of segments 3 and 4, locating between the middle hepatic vein running in the main portal scissura and the left hepatic vein running in the left portal scissura. The falciform ligament and the umbilical fissure separate segment 4 from segment 3. The Couinaud’s left lateral sector, which is located within the left territory of the left hepatic vein, is comprised only of segment 2. The caudate lobe is defined as segment 1 in both the Couinaud’s portal and the Healey’s arteriobiliary segmentation systems. This segment is surrounded by the major vascular structures, with the retrohepatic posteriorly, the main portal pedicle inferiorly and the hepatocaval confluence superiorly. Its inflow vasculature originates from both the right and the left portal pedicles, and its biliary drainage exists as a similar pattern. Its venous drainage directly enters into the retrohepatic IVC.
Pringle Maneuver
After the first major hepatic resection, a left hepatic resection, carried out in 1888 by Carl Langenbuch, it took another 20 years before the first right hepatectomy was described by Walter Wendel in 1911. Three years before, in 1908, Hogarth Pringle provided the first description of a technique of vascular control, the portal triad clamping, nowadays known as the Pringle maneuver. Liver surgery has progressed rapidly since then. Modern surgical concepts and techniques, together with advances in anesthesiological care, intensive care medicine, perioperative imaging, and interventional radiology, together with multimodal oncological concepts, have resulted in fundamental changes. Perioperative outcome has improved significantly, and even major hepatic resections can be performed with morbidity and mortality rates of less than 45% and 4% respectively in highvolume liver surgery centers. Many liver surgeries performed routinely in specialized centers today were considered to be high-risk or nonresectable by most surgeons less than 1–2 decades ago.Interestingly, operative blood loss remains the most important predictor of postoperative morbidity and mortality, and therefore vascular control remains one of the most important aspects in liver surgery.
“Bleeding control is achieved by vascular control and optimized and careful parenchymal transection during liver surgery, and these two concepts are cross-linked.”
First described by Pringle in 1908, it has proven effective in decreasing haemorrhage during the resection of the liver tissue. It is frequently used, and it consists in temporarily occluding the hepatic artery and the portal vein, thus limiting the flow of blood into the liver, although this also results in an increased venous pressure in the mesenteric territory. Hemodynamic repercussion during the PM is rare because it only diminishes the venous return in 15% of cases. The cardiovascular system slightly increases the systemic vascular resistance as a compensatory response, thereby limiting the drop in the arterial pressure. Through the administration of crystalloids, it is possible to maintain hemodynamic stability.
In the 1990s, the PM was used continuously for 45 min and even up to an hour because the depth of the potential damage that could occur due to hepatic ischemia was not yet known. During the PM, the lack of oxygen affects all liver cells, especially Kupffer cells which represent the largest fixed macrophage mass. When these cells are deprived of oxygen, they are an endless source of production of the tumour necrosis factor (TNF) and interleukins 1, 6, 8 and 10. IL 6 has been described as the cytokine that best correlates to postoperative complications. In order to mitigate the effects of continuous PM, intermittent clamping of the portal pedicle has been developed. This consists of occluding the pedicle for 15 min, removing the clamps for 5 min, and then starting the manoeuvre again. This intermittent passage of the hepatic tissue through ischemia and reperfusion shows the development of hepatic tolerance to the lack of oxygen with decreased cell damage. Greater ischemic tolerance to this intermittent manoeuvre increases the total time it can be used.
Management of gallbladder cancer
Gallbladder cancer is uncommon disease, although it is not rare. Indeed, gallbladder cancer is the fifth most common gastrointestinal cancer and the most common biliary tract cancer in the United States. The incidence is 1.2 per 100,000 persons per year. It has historically been considered as an incu-rable malignancy with a dismal prognosis due to its propensity for early in-vasion to liver and dissemination to lymph nodes and peritoneal surfaces. Patients with gallbladder cancer usually present in one of three ways: (1) advanced unresectable cancer; (2) detection of suspicious lesion preoperatively and resectable after staging work-up; (3) incidental finding of cancer during or after cholecystectomy for benign disease.
SURGICAL MANAGEMENT
Although, many studies have suggested improved survival in patients with early gallbladder cancer with radical surgery including en bloc resection of gallbladder fossa and regional lymphadenectomy, its role for those with advanced gallbladder cancer remains controversial. First, patients with more advanced disease often require more extensive resections than early stage tumors, and operative morbidity and mortality rates are higher. Second, the long-term outcomes after resection, in general, tend to be poorer; long-term survival after radical surgery has been reported only for patients with limited local and lymph node spread. Therefore, the indication of radical surgery should be limited to well-selected patients based on thorough preoperative and intra-operative staging and the extent of surgery should be determined based on the area of tumor involvement.
Surgical resection is warranted only for those who with locoregional disease without distant spread. Because of the limited sensitivity of current imaging modalities to detect metastatic lesions of gallbladder cancer, staging laparoscopy prior to proceeding to laparotomy is very useful to assess the
abdomen for evidence of discontinuous liver disease or peritoneal metastasis and to avoid unnecessary laparotomy. Weber et al. reported that 48% of patients with potentially resectable gallbladder cancer on preoperative imaging work-up were spared laparotomy by discovering unresectable disease by laparoscopy. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy should be avoided when a preoperative cancer is suspected because of the risk of violation of the plane between tumor and liver and the risk of port site seeding.
The goal of resection should always be complete extirpation with microscopic negative margins. Tumors beyond T2 are not cured by simple cholecystectomy and as with most of early gallbladder cancer, hepatic resection is always required. The extent of liver resection required depends upon whether involvement of major hepatic vessels, varies from segmental resection of segments IVb and V, at minimum to formal right hemihepatectomy or even right trisectionectomy. The right portal pedicle is at particular risk for advanced tumor located at the neck of gallbladder, and when such involvement is suspected, right hepatectomy is required. Bile duct resection and reconstruction is also required if tumor involved in bile duct. However, bile duct resection is associated with increased perioperative morbidity and it should be performed only if it is necessary to clear tumor; bile duct resection does not necessarily increase the lymph node yield.
Hepatic Surgery: Portal Vein Embolization
INTRODUCTION
Portal vein Embolizations (PVE) is commonly used in the patients requiring extensive liver resection but have insufficient Future Liver Remanescent (FLR) volume on preoperative testing. The procedure involves occluding portal venous flow to the side of the liver with the lesion thereby redirecting portal flow to the contralateral side, in an attempt to cause hypertrophy and increase the volume of the FLR prior to hepatectomy.
PVE was first described by Kinoshita and later reported by Makuuchi as a technique to facilitate hepatic resection of hilar cholangiocarcinoma. The technique is now widely used by surgeons all over the world to optimize FLR volume before major liver resections.
PHYSIOPATHOLOGY
PVE works because the extrahepatic factors that induce liver hypertrophy are carried primarily by the portal vein and not the hepatic artery. The increase in FLR size seen after PVE is due to both clonal expansion and cellular hypertrophy, and the extent of post-embolization liver growth is generally proportional to the degree of portal flow diversion. The mechanism of liver regeneration after PVE is a complex phenomenon and is not fully understood. Although the exact trigger of liver regeneration remains unknown, several studies have identified periportal inflammation in the embolized liver as an important predictor of liver regeneration.
THECNICAL ASPECTS
PVE is technically feasible in 99% of the patients with low risk of complications. Studies have shown the FLR to increase by a median of 40–62% after a median of 34–37 days after PVE, and 72.2–80% of the patients are able to undergo resection as planned. It is generally indicated for patients being considered for right or extended right hepatectomy in the setting of a relatively small FLR. It is rarely required before extended left hepatectomy or left trisectionectomy, since the right posterior section (segments 6 and 7) comprises about 30% of total liver volume.
PVE is usually performed through percutaneous transhepatic access to the portal venous system, but there is considerable variability in technique between centers. The access route can be ipsilateral (portal access at the same side being resected) with retrograde embolization or contralateral (portal access through FLR) with antegrade embolization. The type of approach selected depends on a number of factors including operator preference, anatomic variability, type of resection planned, extent of embolization, and type of embolic agent used. Many authors prefer ipsilateral approach especially for right-sided tumors as this technique allows easy catheterization of segment 4 branches when they must be embolized and also minimizes the theoretic risk of injuring the FLR vasculature or bile ducts through a contralateral approach and potentially making a patient ineligible for surgery.
However, majority of the studies on contralateral PVE show it to be a safe technique with low complication rate. Di Stefano et al. reported a large series of contralateral PVE in 188 patients and described 12 complications (6.4%) only 6 of which could be related to access route and none precluded liver resection. Site of portal vein access can also change depending on the choice of embolic material selected which can include glue, Gelfoam, n-butyl-cyanoacrylate (NBC), different types and sizes of beads, alcohol, and nitinol plus. All agents have similar efficacy and there are no official recommendations for a particular type of agent.
RESULTS
Proponents of PVE believe that there should be very little or no tumor progression during the 4–6 week wait period for regeneration after PVE. Rapid growth of the FLR can be expected within the first 3–4 weeks after PVE and can continue till 6–8 weeks. Results from multiple studies suggest that 8–30% hypertrophy over 2–6 weeks can be expected with slower rates in cirrhotic patients. Most studies comparing outcomes after major hepatectomy with and without preoperative PVE report superior outcomes with PVE. Farges et al. demonstrated significantly less risk of postoperative complications, duration of intensive care unit, and hospital stay in patients with cirrhosis who underwent right hepatectomy after PVE compared to those who did not have preoperative PVE. The authors also reported no benefit of PVE in patients with a normal liver and FLR >30%. Abulkhir et al. reported results from a meta-analysis of 1088 patients undergoing PVE and showed a markedly lower incidence of Post Hepatectomy Liver Failure (PHLF) and death compared to series reporting outcomes after major hepatectomy in patients who did not undergo PVE. All patients had FLR volume increase, and 85% went on to have liver resection after PVE with a PHLF incidence of 2.5% and a surgical mortality of 0.8%. Several studies looking at the effect of systemic neoadjuvant chemotherapy on the degree of hypertrophy after PVE show no significant impact on liver regeneration and growth.
VOLUMETRIC RESPONSE
The volumetric response to PVE is also a very important factor in understanding the regenerative capacity of a patient’s liver and when used together with FLR volume can help identify patients at risk of poor postsurgical outcome. Ribero et al. demonstrated that the risk of PHLF was significantly higher not only in patients with FLR ≤ 20% but also in patients with normal liver who demonstrated ≤5% of FLR hypertrophy after PVE. The authors concluded that the degree of hypertrophy >10% in patients with severe underlying liver disease and >5% in patients with normal liver predicts a low risk of PHLF and post-resection mortality. Many authors do not routinely offer resection to patients with borderline FLR who demonstrate ≤5% hypertrophy after PVE.
Predicting LIVER REMNANT Function
Careful analysis of outcome based on liver remnant volume stratified by underlying liver disease has led to recommendations regarding the safe limits of resection. The liver remnant to be left after resection is termed the future liver remnant (FLR). For patients with normal underlying liver, complications, extended hospital stay, admission to the intensive care unit, and hepatic insufficiency are rare when the standardized FLR is >20% of the TLV. For patients with tumor-related cholestasis or marked underlying liver disease, a 40% liver remnant is necessary to avoid cholestasis, fluid retention, and liver failure. Among patients who have been treated with preoperative systemic chemotherapy for more than 12 weeks, FLR >30% reduces the rate of postoperative liver insufficiency and subsequent mortality.
When the liver remnant is normal or has only mild disease, the volume of liver remnant can be measured directly and accurately with threedimensional computed tomography (CT) volumetry. However, inaccuracy may arise because the liver to be resected is often diseased, particularly in patients with cirrhosis or biliary obstruction. When multiple or large tumors occupy a large volume of the liver to be resected, subtracting tumor volumes from liver volume further decreases accuracy of CT volumetry. The calculated TLV, which has been derived from the association between body surface area (BSA) and liver size, provides a standard estimate of the TLV. The following formula is used:
TLV (cm3) = –794.41 + 1267.28 × BSA (square meters)
Thus, the standardized FLR (sFLR) volume calculation uses the measured FLR volume from CT volumetry as the numerator and the calculated TLV as the denominator: Standardized FLR (sFLR) = measured FLR volume/TLV Calculating the standardized TLV corrects the actual liver volume to the individual patient’s size and provides an individualized estimate of that patient’s postresection liver function. In the event of an inadequate FLR prior to major hepatectomy, preoperative liver preparation may include portal vein embolization (PVE).
Classroom: Principles of Hepatic Surgery
Videos of Surgical Procedures
This page provides links to prerecorded webcasts of surgical procedures. These are actual operations performed at medical centers in the Brazil. Please note that you cannot send in questions by email, though the webcast may say that you can, because you are not seeing these videos live. The videos open in a second window. If you have a pop-up blocker, you will need to disable it to view the programs.
Videos of Surgical Procedures
Strangulation in GROIN HERNIAS
Importance
In both the UK and the USA the annual death rate due to inguinal and femoral hernia has decreased in the last two to three decades. In the UK, deaths for inguinal and femoral hernia declined from 22 to 55% respectively from 1975 to 1990. The annual deaths in the USA per 100,000 population for patients with hernia and intestinal obstruction decreased from 5.1 in 1968 to 3.0 in 1988. For inguinal hernia with obstruction, 88% of patients underwent surgery with a mortality rate of 0.05%. These figures could be interpreted as showing that elective groin hernia surgery has reduced overall mortality rates.
In support of this contention is the fact that strangulation rates are lower in the USA than in the UK, which could be a consequence of the three times higher rate of elective hernia surgery in the USA. Even so, the available statistics show that rates of elective hernia surgery in the USA per 100,000 population fell from 358 to 220 between 1975 and 1990, although this may be an artifact of the data collection systems rather than a real decline.
During the period 1991–1992, 210 deaths occurring following inguinal hernia repair and 120 deaths following femoral hernia repair were investigated by the UK National Confidential Enquiry Into Perioperative Deaths. This enquiry is concerned with the quality of delivery of surgery, anesthesia, and perioperative care. Expert advisers compare the records of patients who have died with index cases. In this group of 330 patients many were elderly (45 were aged 80–89 years) and significantly infirm unfit; 24 were ASA grade III and 21 ASA grade IV. Postoperative mortality was attributed to preexisting cardiorespiratory problems in the majority of cases. In a nationwide study in Denmark of 158 patients dying after acute groin hernia repair, Kjaergaard et al. also found that these patients were old (median age 83 years) and fragile (>80% with significant comorbidity), with frequent delay in diagnosis and subsequent treatment. Clearly this group of patients requires high-quality care by an experienced surgeon and anesthetist with skills equivalent to that of the ASA grade of the patient.
Postoperative care should necessarily take place in a high-dependency unit or intensive therapy unit; this may necessitate transfer of selected patients to appropriate hospitals and facilities. Sensible decisions must be made in consultation with relatives of extremely elderly, frail, or moribund patients to adopt a humane approach, which may rule out interventional surgery.
Forty percent of patients with femoral hernia are admitted as emergency cases with strangulation or incarceration, whereas only 3% of patients with direct inguinal hernias present with strangulation. This clearly has implications for the prioritization on waiting lists when these types of hernia present electively to outpatient clinics. A groin hernia is at its greatest risk of strangulation within 3 months of its onset. For inguinal hernia at 3 months after presentation, the cumulative probability of strangulation is 2.8%, rising to 4.5% after 2 years. For femoral hernia the risk is much higher, with a 22% probability of strangulation at 3 months after presentation rising to 45% at 21 months. Right-sided hernias strangulate more frequently than left-sided hernias; this is possibly related to mesenteric anatomy.
Evidence-Based Medicine
In a randomized trial, evaluating an expectative approach to minimally symptomatic inguinal hernias, Fitzgibbons et al. in the group of patients randomized to watchful waiting found a risk of an acute hernia episode of 1.8 in 1,000 patient years. In another trial, O’Dwyer and colleagues, randomizing patients with painless inguinal hernias to observation or operation, found two acute episodes in 80 patients randomized to observation. In both studies, a large percentage of patients randomized to nonoperative care were eventually operated due to symptoms. Neuhauser, who studied a population in Columbia where elective herniorrhaphy was virtually unobtainable, found an annual rate of strangulation of 0.29% for inguinal hernias.
Management of Strangulation
Diagnosis is based on symptoms and signs supplemented by diagnostic imaging when indicated. Pain over the hernia site is invariable, and obstruction with strangulation of intestine will cause colicky abdominal pain, distension, vomiting, and constipation. Physical examination may reveal degrees of dehydration with or without CNS depression, especially in the elderly if uremia is present, together with abdominal signs of intestinal obstruction. Femoral hernias can be easily missed, especially in the obese female, and a thorough examination should be performed in order to make the correct diagnosis. Frequently, however, physical examination alone is insuf fi ciently accurate to con fi rm the presence of a strangulating femoral hernia vs. lymphadenopathy vs. a lymph node abscess. In these instances, one may elect to perform radiographic studies such as an ultrasound or a CT scan on an urgent or emergent basis.
The choice of incision will depend on the type hernia if the diagnosis is confi dent. When the diagnosis is in doubt, a half Pfannenstiel incision 2 cm above the pubic ramus, extending laterally, will give an adequate approach to all types of femoral or inguinal hernia. The fundus of the hernia sac can then be approached and exposed and an incision made to expose the contents of the sac. This will allow determination of the viability of its contents. Nonviability will necessitate conversion of the transverse incision into a laparotomy incision followed by release of the constricting hernia ring, reduction of the contents of the sac, resection, and reanastomosis. Precautions should be taken to avoid contamination of the general peritoneal cavity by gangrenous bowel or intestinal contents. In the majority of cases, once the constriction of the hernia ring has been released, circulation to the intestine is reestablished and viability returns. Intestine that is initially dusky, aperistaltic, or dull in hue may pink up with a short period of warming with damp packs once the constriction band is released. If viability is doubtful, resection should be performed. Resection rates are highest for femoral or recurrent inguinal hernias and lowest for inguinal hernias. Other organs, such as bladder or omentum, should be resected, as the need requires. After peritoneal lavage and formal closure of the laparotomy incision, specific repair of the groin hernia defect should be performed. In this situation prosthetic mesh should not be used in an operative fi eld that has been contaminated and in which there is a relatively high risk of wound infection. The hernia repair should follow the general principles for elective hernia repair. It should be kept in mind, that in this group of predominantly frail and elderly patients with a very high postoperative mortality risk, the primary objective of the operation is to stop the vicious cycle of strangulation, and only secondary to repair the hernia defect.
Key Point
The risk of an acute groin hernia episode is of particular relevance, when discussing indication for operation of painless or minimally symptomatic hernias. A sensible approach in groin hernias would be, in accordance with the guidelines from the European Hernia Society to advise a male patient, that the risk of an acute operation, with an easily reducible (“disappears when lying down”) inguinal hernia with little or no symptoms, is low and that the indication for operation in this instance is not absolute, but also inform, that usually the hernia after some time will cause symptoms, eventually leading to an operation. In contrast, female patients with a groin hernia, due to the high frequency of femoral hernias and a relatively high risk of acute hernia episodes, should usually be recommended an operation.
Wound Healing
There are many local and systemic factors that affect wound healing. The physician should be actively working to correct any abnormality that can prevent or slow wound healing.
Local Factors
A health care provider can improve wound healing by controlling local factors. He or she must clean the wound, debride it, and close it appropriately. Avulsion or crush wounds below under general management of wounds) need to be debrided until all nonviable tissue is removed. Grossly contaminated wounds should be cleaned as completely as possible to remove particulate matter (foreign bodies) and should be irrigated copiously. Bleeding must be controlled to prevent hematoma formation, which is an excellent medium for bacterial growth. Hematoma also separates wound edges, preventing the proper contact of tissues that is necessary for healing.
Radiation affects local wound healing by causing vasculitis, which leads to local hypoxia and ischemia. Hypoxia and ischemia impede healing by reducing the amount of nutrients and oxygen that are available at the wound site. Infection decreases the rate of wound healing and detrimentally affects proper granulation tissue formation, decreases oxygen delivery, and depletes the wound of needed nutrients. Care must be taken to clean the wound adequately. All wounds have some degree of contamination, if the body is able to control bacterial proliferation in a wound, that wound will heal. The use of cleansing agents (the simplest is soap and water) can help reduce contamination. A wound that contains the highly virulent streptococci species should not be closed. Physicians should keep in mind the potential for Clostridium tetani in wounds with devitalized tissue and use the proper prophylaxis.
Systemic Factors
In addition to controlling local factors, the physician must address systemic issues that can affect wound healing. Nutrition is an extremely important factor in wound healing. Patients need adequate nutrition to support protein synthesis, collagen formation, and metabolic energy for wound healing. Patients need adequate vitamins and nutrients to facilitate healing; folic acid is critical to the proper formation of collagen. Adequate fat intake is required for the absorption of vitamins D, A, K, and E. Vitamin K is essential for the
carboxylation of glutamate in the synthesis of clotting factors II, VII, IX, and X. Decreasing clotting factors can lead to hematoma formation and altered wound healing. Vitamin A increases the inflammatory response, increases collagen synthesis, and increases the influx of macrophages into a wound. Magnesium is required for protein synthesis, and zinc is a cofactor for RNA and DNA polymerase. Lack of any one of these vitamins or trace elements will adversely affect wound healing. Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus results in uncontrolled hyperglycemia, impairs wound healing, and alters collagen
formation. Hyperglycemia also inhibits fibroblast and endothelial cell proliferation within the wound. Medications will also affect wound healing. For example, steroids blunt the inflammatory response, decrease the available vitamin A in the wound, and alter the deposition and remodeling of collagen. Chronic illness (immune deficiency, cancer, uremia, liver disease, and jaundice) will predispose to infection, protein deficiency, and malnutrition, which, as noted previously, can affect wound healing. Smoking has a systemic effect by decreasing the oxygencarrying capacity of hemoglobin. Smoking may also decrease collagen formation within a wound. Hypoxia results in a decrease in oxygen delivery to a wound and retards healing.
Abdominal Surgical Anatomy
The abdomen is the lower part of the trunk below the diaphragm. Its walls surround a large cavity called the abdominal cavity. The abdominal cavity is much more extensive than what it appears from the outside. It extends upward deep to the costal margin up to the diaphragm and downward within the bony pelvis. Thus, a considerable part of the abdominal cavity is overlapped by the lower part of the thoracic cage above and by the bony pelvis below. The abdominal cavity is subdivided by the plane of the pelvic inlet into a larger upper part, i.e., the abdominal cavity proper, and a smaller lower part, i.e., the pelvic cavity. Clinically the importance of the abdomen is manifold. To the physician, the physical examination of the patient is never complete until he/she thoroughly examines the abdomen. To the surgeon, the abdomen remains an enigma because in number of cases the cause of abdominal pain and nature of abdominal lump remains inconclusive even after all possible investigations. To summarize, many branches of medicine such as general surgery and gastroenterology are all confined to the abdomen.
Classroom: Abdominal Surgical Anatomy
Minimally Invasive Approach to Choledocholithiasis
Introduction
The incidence of choledocholithiasis in patients undergoing cholecystectomy is estimated to be 10 %. The presence of common bile duct stones is associated with several known complications including cholangitis, gallstone pancreatitis, obstructive jaundice, and hepatic abscess. Making the diagnosis early and prompt management is crucial. Traditionally, when choledocholithiasis is identified with intraoperative cholangiography during the cholecystectomy, it has been managed surgically by open choledochotomy and place- ment of a T-tube. This open surgical approach has a morbidity rate of 10–15 %, mortality rate of <1 %, with a <6 % incidence of retained stones. Patients who fail endoscopic retrieval of CBD stones, as well as cases in which an endoscopic approach is not appropriate, should be explored surgically.
Clinical Manifestation
Acute obstruction of the bile duct by a stone causes a rapid distension of the biliary tree and activation of local pain fibers. Pain is the most common presenting symptom for choledocholithiasis and is localized to either the right upper quadrant or to the epigastrium. The obstruction will also cause bile stasis which is a risk factor for bacterial over- growth. The bacteria may originate from the duodenum or the stone itself. The combination of biliary obstruction and colo- nization of the biliary tree will lead to the development of fevers, the second most common presenting symptom of cho- ledocholithiasis. Biliary obstruction, if unrelieved, will lead to jaundice. When these three symptoms (pain, fever, and jaundice) are found simultaneously, it is known as Charcot’s triad. This triad suggests the diagnosis of acute ascending cholangitis, a potentially life-threatening condition. If not treated promptly, this can lead to hypotension and decreased metal status, both signs of severe sepsis. When combined with Charcot’s triad, this constellation of symptoms is commonly referred to as Reynolds pentad.
Laparoscopic common bile duct exploration
Laparoscopic common bile duct exploration (LCBDE) allows for single stage treatment of gallstone disease, reducing overall hospital stay, improving safety and cost-effectiveness when compared to the two-stage approach of ERCP and laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Bile duct clearance can be confirmed by direct visualization with a choledochoscope. But, before the advent of choledochoscope, bile duct clearance was uncertain, and blind instrumentation of the duct resulted in accentuated edema and inflammation. Due to advancement in instruments, optical magnification, and direct visualization, laparoscopic exploration of the CBD results in fewer traumas to the bile duct. This has led to an increasing tendency to close the duct primarily, reducing the need for placement of T-tubes. Still, laparoscopic bile duct exploration is being done in only a few centers. Apart from the need for special instruments, there is also a significant learning curve to acquire expertise to be able to perform a laparoscopic bile duct surgery.
Morbidity and mortality rates of laparoscopic exploration are comparable to ERCP (2–17 and 1–5 %), and there is no clear difference in primary success rates between the two approaches. However, the endoscopic approach may be preferable for elderly and frail patients, who are at higher risk with surgery. Patients older than 70–80 years of age have a 4–10 % mortality rate with open duct exploration. It may be as high as 20 % in elderly patients undergoing urgent procedures. In comparison, advanced age and comor- bidities do not have a significant impact on overall complication rates for ERCP. A success rate of over 90 % has been reported with laparoscopic CBD exploration. Availability of surgical expertise and appropriate equipment affect the success rate of laparoscopic exploration, as does the size, number of the CBD stones, as well as biliary anatomy. Over the years, laparoscopic exploration has become efficient, safe, and cost effective. Complications include CBD laceration, stricture formation, bile leak, abscess, pancreatitis, and retained stones.
In cases of failure of laparoscopic CBD exploration, a guidewire or stent can be passed through the cystic duct, common bile duct, and through the ampulla into the duodenum followed by cholecystectomy. This makes the identification and cannulation of the ampulla easier during the post- operative ERCP. Laparoscopic common bile duct exploration is traditionally performed through a transcystic or transductal approach. The transcystic approach is appropriate under certain circumstances. These include a small stone (<10 mm) located in the CBD, presence of small common bile duct (<6 mm), or if there is poor access to the common duct. The transductal approach is preferable in cases of large stones, stones in proximal ducts (hepatic ducts), large occluding stones in a large duct, presence of multiple stones, or if the cystic duct is small (<4 mm) or tortuous. Contraindications for laparoscopic approach include lack of training, and severe inflammation in the porta hepatis making the exploration difficult and risky.
Key Points
With advancement in imaging technology, laparoscopic and endoscopic techniques, management of common bile duct stone has changed drasti- cally in recent years. This has made the treatment of this condition safe and more efficient. Many options are now available to manage this condition, and any particular modality for treatment should be chosen carefully based on the patient related factors, institutional protocol, available expertise, resources, and cost-effectiveness.
Classroom: M.I.A. of Choledocholithiasis
Management of Complicated Appendicitis: Open or Laparoscopic Surgery?
Patients with acute appendicitis can present at different stages of the disease process, ranging from mild mucosal inflammation to frank perforation with abscess formation. The reported overall incidence of acute appendicitis varies with age, gender, and geographical differences. Interestingly, while the incidence of non-perforated appendicitis in the United States decreased between 1970 and 2004, no significant decline in the rate of perforated appendicitis was observed despite the increasng use of computed tomography (CT) and fewer negative appendectomies.
Of 32,683 appendectomies sampled from the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) hospitals between 2005 and 2008, 5,405 patients (16.5%) had a preoperative diagnosis of acute appendicitis with peritonitis/abscess.
The definition of complicated appendicitis varies slightly in the literature. Clinicopathological diagnoses (gangrenous, perforated, appendiceal abscess/phlegmon) of acute appendicitis are commonly used for its definition. Classically, patients at the extremes of age are more likely to present with complicated appendicitis. Similarly, pre-morbid conditions including diabetes and type of medical insurance are significantly associated with the risk of perforation.
The importance of early appendectomy has also been emphasized to prevent perforation of the appendix and the sub- sequent negative impact on patient outcomes. However, more recent meta-analysis data supports the safety of a relatively short (12–24 h) delay before appendectomy, which was not significantly associated with increased rate of complicated appendicitis. Teixeira et al. also showed that the time to appendectomy was not a significant risk factor for perforated appendicitis but did result in a significantly increased risk of surgical site infection.
The outcome of patients with complicated appendicitis is significantly worse than patients with uncomplicated appendicitis. A population-based study from Sweden showed that, in a risk-adjusted model, patients with perforated appendicitis were 2.34 times more likely to die after appendectomy than non- perforated appendicitis patients. Because of its higher mortality and morbidity in patients with complicated appendicitis, the management of complicated appendicitis has evolved significantly over the last few decades.
Open or Laparoscopic Surgery
Since the first laparoscopic appendectomy was described by Semm in 1983, multiple studies have compared operative time, complication rates, length of hospital stay, hospital cost, and other outcomes between open and laparoscopic appendectomy for acute appendicitis. The most recent Cochrane review included 67 studies showing that laparoscopic appendectomy was associated with a lower incidence of wound infection, reduced postoperative pain, shorter postoperative length of hospital stay, and faster recovery to daily activity. In contrast, reduced risk of intra-abdominal abscesses and shorter operative time were found as the advantages of open appendectomy.
Due to increased surgeon experience in uncomplicated appendicitis, laparoscopic appendectomy is more frequently attempted even in complicated appendicitis cases as an alternative approach to open appendectomy. Although the general surgical steps for complicated appendicitis are similar to those for uncomplicated appendicitis, the laparoscopic procedure can be more technically demanding. Therefore, conversion from laparoscopic appendectomy to open appendectomy can be expected.
Despite these concerns, the laparoscopic approach in patients with com- plicated appendicitis has been proven to be safe and comparable to open appendectomy. Retrospective studies using a large database in the United States uniformly showed more favorable clinical outcomes (mortality, morbidity, length of hospital stay, readmission rate) and hospital costs in patients who underwent laparoscopic appendectomy when compared to open appendectomy. The real risk of developing an intra- abdominal abscess after laparoscopic appendectomy remains unclear. A meta-analysis by Markides et al. found no significant difference in the intra-abdominal abscess rate between laparoscopic and open appendectomy for complicated appendicitis, whereas Ingraham et al. showed a higher likelihood of developing an organ-space surgical site infection in patients undergoing laparoscopic appendectomy.
How to Choose a Mesh in Hernia Repair
Since the introduction of polypropylene (PP) mesh for hernia repair, surgeons continue to discuss the use of mesh in a variety of settings for one of the most common operations performed by general surgeons—hernia repair. This discussion has involved raw materials, cost, and outcomes and for many years referred to only a few products, as manufacturing was limited. Nowadays, with multiple permanent, absorbable, biologic, and hybrid products on the market, the choice of mesh for a hernia repair can be daunting. Increasing clinical complexity further emphasizes the need for individualizing care, but more frequently, hospital supply chain personnel institute product procurement procedures for cost control, limiting mesh choice for surgeons. This can force surgeons into a “one-size-fits-all” practice regarding mesh choice, which may not be ideal for some patients. Conversely, current literature lacks definitive evidence supporting the use of one mesh over another, a fact that has not escaped the radar screen of the hospital supply chain and mesh industry, both of which attempt to limit vendor and mesh choice for financial gain. It is unlikely that this type of “proof” will ever come to fruition. This leaves us with choosing a mesh based on an algorithm that is centered on the patient and the patient’s unique clinical scenario.
Article: Mesh in Hernia Repair
Modern Concepts of Pancreatic Surgery
Operations on the gallbladder and bile ducts are among the surgical procedures most commonly performed by general surgeons. In most hospitals, cholecystectomy is the most frequently performed operation within the abdomen. Pancreatic surgery is less frequent , but because of the close relation between the biliary system and the pancreas, knowledge of pancreatic problems is equally essential to the surgeon. Acute and chronic pancreatitis and cancer of the pancreas are often encountered by surgeons, with apparently increasing frequency; their treatment remains difficult and perplexing. This review demonstrates the modern aspects of pancreatic surgery. Good study.
AULA: PRÍNCIPIOS MODERNOS DA CIRURGIA PANCREÁTICA
Cuidados Gerais com a FERIDA PÓS-OPERATÓRIA
A avaliação e os cuidados de feridas pós-operatórias deve ser do domínio de todos os profissionais que atuam na clínica cirúrgica. O conhecimento a cerca dos processos relacionados a cicatrização tecidual é importante tanto nos cuidados como na prevenção de complicações, tais como: infecções e deiscência. Como tal, todos os profissionais médicos, sendo eles cirurgiões ou de outras especialidades, que participam do manejo clínico dos pacientes no período perioperatório devem apreciar a fisiologia da cicatrização de feridas e os princípios de tratamento de feridas pós-operatório. O objetivo deste artigo é atualizar os profissionais médicos de outras especialidades sobre os aspectos importantes do tratamento de feridas pós-operatório através de uma revisão da fisiologia da cicatrização de feridas, os métodos de limpeza e curativo, bem como um guia sobre complicações de feridas pós-operatórias mais prevalentes e como devem ser manejados nesta situação.
Causas de conversão da VIDEOCOLECISTECTOMIA
Estima-se que atualmente 90% das colecistectomias sejam realizadas pela técnica laparoscópica, percentual este atingido nos Estados Unidos da América no ano de 1992. Os motivos para tal preferência na escolha da técnica cirúrgica aplicada são claros: menor dor no pós-operatório, recuperação pós-cirúrgica mais rápida, menor número de dias de trabalho perdidos e menor tempo de permanência hospitalar. A colecistectomia laparoscópica foi claramente estabelecida como padrão-ouro para o tratamento cirúrgico da litíase biliar, no entanto 2 a 15% das colecistectomias vídeolaparoscópicas necessitam de conversão para cirurgia convencional, sendo as razões mais comuns a inabilidade para se identificar corretamente a anatomia, suspeita de lesão da árvore biliar e sangramento. A identificação dos fatores associados a um maior índice de conversão possibilita à equipe cirúrgica estimar o grau de dificuldade do procedimento, preparando melhor o paciente para o risco de conversão e permitindo a participação de um cirurgião mais experiente num procedimento de maior risco.
Relacionados ao Paciente: 1. Obesidade (IMC > 35), 2. Sexo Masculino, 3. Idade > 65 anos, 4. Diabetes Mellitus e 5. ASA > 2.
Relacionadas a Doença: 1. Colecistite Aguda, 2. Líquido Pericolecístico, 3. Pós – CPRE, 4. Síndrome de Mirizzi e 5. Edema da parede da vesícula > 5 mm.
Relacionadas a Cirurgia: 1. Hemorragia, 2. Aderências firmes, 3. Anatomia obscura, 4. Fístulas internas e 5. Cirurgia abdominal prévia.
Management of POST-HEPATECTOMY complications
Hepatectomia Esquerda – Metástase CR
Hepatic resection had an impressive growth over time. It has been widely performed for the treatment of various liver diseases, such as malignant tumors, benign tumors, calculi in the intrahepatic ducts, hydatid disease, and abscesses. Management of hepatic resection is challenging. Despite technical advances and high experience of liver resection of specialized centers, it is still burdened by relatively high rates of postoperative morbidity and mortality. Especially, complex resections are being increasingly performed in high risk and older patient population. Operation on the liver is especially challenging because of its unique anatomic architecture and because of its vital functions. Common post-hepatectomy complications include venous catheter-related infection, pleural effusion, incisional infection, pulmonary atelectasis or infection, ascites, subphrenic infection, urinary tract infection, intraperitoneal hemorrhage, gastrointestinal tract bleeding, biliary tract hemorrhage, coagulation disorders, bile leakage, and liver failure. These problems are closely related to surgical manipulations, anesthesia, preoperative evaluation and preparation, and postoperative observation and management. The safety profile of hepatectomy probably can be improved if the surgeons and medical staff involved have comprehensive knowledge of the expected complications and expertise in their management.
Classroom: Hepatic Resections
The era of hepatic surgery began with a left lateral hepatic lobectomy performed successfully by Langenbuch in Germany in 1887. Since then, hepatectomy has been widely performed for the treatment of various liver diseases, such as malignant tumors, benign tumors, calculi in the intrahepatic ducts, hydatid disease, and abscesses. Operation on the liver is especially challenging because of its unique anatomic architecture and because of its vital functions. Despite technical advances and high experience of liver resection of specialized centers, it is still burdened by relatively high rates of postoperative morbidity (4.09%-47.7%) and mortality (0.24%-9.7%). This review article focuses on the major postoperative issues after hepatic resection and presents the current management.
REVIEW_ARTICLE_HEPATECTOMY_COMPLICATIONS
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The SURGEON 