Grange D

Resection of hepatocellular carcinomas: Results in 72 European patients with cirrhosis

This study was undertaken to determine the results of resection of hepatocellular carcinoma in cirrhotic patients in Europe, using the same criteria as in the Orient for detection, surgical management, and pathology of the tumors. Seventy-two patients had a liver resection. One- and 3-yr survival rates were 68% and 51%, respectively. Survival rate was significantly higher in Childs/Pughs class A than in class B-C patients. Patients with a thickly encapsulated tumor lived longer than those with an infiltrating tumor and had in addition a significantly lower incidence of cancer recurrence. Class A patients with a thickly encapsulated hepatocellular carcinoma had a 77% 3-year survival rate. There was no relation between the size of the tumor or the presence of symptoms and survival. These data suggest that good results can be achieved by resection of hepatocellular carcinomas in European cirrhotic patients. A thickly encapsulated tumor and an adequate liver function are the main determinants of low cancer recurrence and high survival. The clinical results in this series are similar to those reported from the Orient.

Hepatectomy without abdominal drainage: results of a prospective study in 61 patients

The increasingly simple postoperative course of major surgery has challenged the routine use of drainage after most abdominal surgical procedures. Therefore a prospective study was designed to determine if abdominal drainage could be safely avoided after liver resection and was evaluated in 61 consecutive patients. There was one postoperative death (1.7%) from variceal bleeding. Four other patients (6.7%) developed an abdominal complication: two right subphrenic hematomas requiring reoperation in one case and two incisional ascitic leaks requiring incisional repair in one patient. There was neither a subphrenic abscess nor bile peritonitis. Postoperative hospitalization was 11.5 +/- 3 days in the entire group and 8.5 +/- 1 days in patients without complications. These results suggest that liver resection can be performed safely without abdominal drainage and that the routine use of drains is unnecessary.

Effect of haemodilution on transfusion requirements in liver resection.

Between April, 1988, and February, 1989, 22 consecutive patients underwent liver resection (17 hepatectomy, 5 segmentectomy) with intraoperative haemodilution to avoid blood transfusion. The results were compared with those of 22 patients who underwent liver resection without haemodilution between February, 1987, and April, 1988, and who were matched for the nature of the tumour and the type of liver resection. Age, preoperative haematocrit and haemoglobin concentration, and intraoperative blood loss did not differ between the groups who did and did not undergo haemodilution. There was no abnormal bleeding during liver transection in haemodiluted patients. No allogeneic blood products at all were needed in a significantly greater proportion of the group with haemodilution than of the group without (19 [86%] vs 6 [27%]). The two groups also showed significant differences in the total requirements of allogeneic packed red cells (haemodilution 9 units, no haemodilution 84 units) and fresh frozen plasma (9 vs 119 units). Although the haematocrit was slightly but significantly lower in the group who underwent haemodilution than in those who did not on postoperative days 1 and 8, the differences had disappeared by the second postoperative month. Postoperative complication rates, abnormal results in liver biochemical tests, and lengths of hospital stay were the same in patients with and without haemodilution. Intraoperative haemodilution in patients undergoing liver resection reduced requirements for all blood products, further lowering the risks associated with liver resection.

Comparison of a modified Sugiura procedure with portal systemic shunt for prevention of recurrent variceal bleeding in cirrhosis

BACKGROUND There is no agreement on the management of patients with cirrhosis and recurrent variceal bleeding after failure of medical or endoscopic treatments or both. Portal systemic shunts are highly effective in preventing rebleeding but are associated with a high incidence of chronic encephalopathy. This study compared the results of a slightly modified Sugiura procedure (esophageal transection plus esophagogastric devascularization plus splenectomy) with those of nonselective portal systemic shunts in patients with previous variceal bleeding. METHODS Fifty-four patients were included in this randomized controlled study between January 1984 and April 1989. The major end point was chronic encephalopathy. Secondary end points were recurrent variceal bleeding, survival, ascites, and hepatocellular carcinoma. RESULTS Twenty-seven patients were assigned to each group. The rate of chronic encephalopathy was significantly (p = 0.002) lower after modified Sugiura procedure than after portal systemic shunt. Recurrent variceal bleeding was more frequent after modified Sugiura procedure than after portal systemic shunt, but the difference is not significant. One-, two-, and three-year survival rates were 93%, 81%, and 67%, respectively, in the modified Sugiura group and 78%, 66%, and 39%, respectively, in the portal systemic shunt group (p = 0.044). CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that the modified Sugiura procedure is better overall than the nonselective portal systemic shunt in the management of patients with cirrhosis and recurrent variceal bleeding. Although the rebleeding rate is higher after the modified Sugiura procedure, this does not seem to affect mortality in these patients.

Endoscopic hemoclips in postoperative bleeding.

The field of application for endoscopic hemoclips has been increasingly extended, especially thanks to improvements in clips and additional clinical indications. Hemoclips are used more frequently for upper gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding and sometimes after therapeutic endoscopy. We report the successful use of endoscopic hemoclips in the management of two cases of postoperative colonic haemorrhage.