Manuel Bellver

Transthoracic oesophagectomy with lymphadenectomy in 100 oesophageal cancer patients.: Multidisciplinary approach

ObjetivesAnalysis of the results on the treatment of esophageal cancer by transthoracic esophagectomy by a multidisciplinary team of surgeons and oncologists.MethodsBetween January 1990 and December 2009, 100 consecutive patients underwent transthoracic esophagectomy. Data were collected prospectively and clinical, pathological and histological features of the tumors were analyzed as well as the results of postoperative morbidity and mortality.ResultsThe average patient age was 55 years (range 31–83 years). In 59 cases the tumor was located in the lower third and in 41 cases in the middle third. Forty-six patients had adenocarcinoma and 54 squamous cell carcinoma. In 54 cases radio-chemotherapy was planned preoperatively. Classification according to pathological tumor stage was: stage 0 in 21 patients, stage I in 10 patients, stage IIa in 28, stage IIb in 9, stage III in 21 and stage IV in 11. The mean number of lymph nodes examined was 14 (range 0–28). Hospital mortality occurred in 4 cases and postoperative complications in 29 patients (33%). The most frequent postoperative complication was pulmonary complications in 17 cases. The average hospital stay was 15.2 days (range 10–40 days)ConclusionsThe results of esophageal cancer have been improved in recent years due to the formation of multidisciplinary teams in this pathology. In our study we have shown that the results obtained with the transthoracic technique for cancer of the esophagus are within the ranges reported in the literature for teams with high prevalence of the disease.

Perforación de ulcus gigante duodenal: reparación innovadora mediante una plastia del antro gástrico

Backgrounds: the treatment of a perforated giant duodenal ulcer (GUDs) represents a formidable surgical challenge regarding the duodenal wall defect repair in severe peritonitis setting. A high incidence of dehiscence and hospital mortality (15-40%- has been reported with the majority of the techniques). We report a case of GUDs perforation successfully treated with a subtotal gastrectomy and a gastric patch with the remnant antrum, for repairing the duodenal defect. Case report: a 63-years-old man with antecedents of peptic ulcer disease presents a large duodenal ulcer perforation with 48 hrs delay and associated with severe peritonitis and a retroperitoneal collection. A subtotal gastrectomy with Billroth II reconstruction and reconstruction of the duodenal defect with a patch of the remnant antrum was carried out. The patient was discharged at 17 th postop erative day with good tolerance. Discussion: the duodenal defect repair with a patch of the re mant antrum, represents a valid alternative in similar circumstances. To our knowledge, it appears to be the first clinical description of this technique

Efficacy of Laparoscopic Approach in the Management of Early Liver Transplant Complications

The use of the laparoscopic approach in managing early liver transplant complications has been shown to be safe and feasible in various settings with the advantages of shorter recovery period, decreased postoperative pain, and rapid functional recovery. The laparoscopic approach has been used to resolve postoperative complications in kidney and pancreas recipients and less often in orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) recipients, most of them in the late period (> 1 month posttransplantation). We herein describe our experience with the laparoscopic management of early complications after liver transplantation. From May 2009 to May 2011, we successfully treated three patients with early abdominal complications after OLT using a laparoscopic approach. Three patients-two with intraabdominal bleedings and one with a small bowel obstruction were treated successfully, thereby avoiding risks of a relaparotomy. In addition to these benefits, the laparoscopic approach causes less tissue injury and consequently evokes a minor innate immune response.

Trasplante ortotópico de hígado en la poliquistosis hepática

INTRODUCTION There is currently no effective medical therapy for polycystic liver (PCL). Cyst puncture and sclerotherapy, cyst fenestration, or partial hepatic resections have been used as palliative treatments. Orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) has become the treatment of choice for terminal PCL, being indicated in patients with limiting symptoms not susceptible to any other medical treatment. It is also difficult to determine the priority on the waiting list using the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD). METHODS A retrospective analysis of OLT for PCL was conducted in our centre. Inclusion criteria were patients with limiting symptoms, bilateral cysts liver, and insufficient remaining liver. In all cases a deceased donor liver transplantation with piggy-back technique without veno-venous bypass was performed. RESULTS Six patients underwent liver transplantation for PCL between April 1992 and April 2010, one of them a combined liver-kidney transplantation. The mean intraoperative packed red blood cell transfusion was 3.25 L and fresh frozen plasma was 1.200 cc. Mean operation time was 299 min, and 498 min in the liver-kidney transplantation. There was no peri-operative mortality. The mean hospital stay was 6.5 days. All patients are healthy after a mean follow-up of 71 months. CONCLUSION OLT offers an excellent overall survival. Results are better when OLT is performed early; thus these patients should receive additional points to be able to use the MELD score as a valid prioritisation system for waiting lists.