Takuji Fukui

A bacteriological study of perforated duodenal ulcers

Peritoneal fluid sampling and bacteriological examination were performed in 63 patients with perforated duodenal ulcers, and the results compared with those in 175 patients with other perforations. Bacterial culture was positive in 100 per cent of the patients whose perforations occurred in the colon, whereas it was positive in only 44.4 per cent of those with duodenal perforations, being negative in many cases when the interval from perforation to surgery was short. A mixed contamination with both aerobes and anaerobes was usually found in the cases of lower digestive tract perforation, and the isolates from duodenal perforations were uniquely aerobes in most cases. It is suggested that bacteria play a minor role in the pathogenesis of early stage duodenal perforation, which supports the technique of primary closure without indwelling drainage tubes during early stage operations following sufficient peritoneal lavage. Moreover, if the stomach is empty at the time of perforation and the peritonitis is localized, even conservative therapy seems possible, provided it is begun shortly after the perforation.

The relationship between juxtapapillary duodenal diverticula and the presence of bacteria in the bile

A total of 432 patients with gallstone disease were studied with respect to the existence of juxtapapillary duodenal diverticula and their relationship to the presence of bacteria in the bile. A total of 63 patients were found to have diverticula with an incidence of 14.6 per cent, being significantly higher in the elderly group aged 60 years or older (p<0.01), and no sex difference was noted. Among the patients with diverticula, positive bacterial cultures of bile were recognized at a significantly higher frequency, being found in 49 of the 63 patients (77.8 per cent; p<0.01), and the probability of bilirubinate stones was also higher, being found in 35 of 37 patients (94.6 per cent; p<0.01). The presence of a diverticulum bore significant relation to a higher positive bile bacterial culture (p<0.05), dilatation of the common bile duct (p<0.05), and elevation of the bile duct pressure (p<0.05), even when the conditions were divided into cholecystolithiasis or choledocholithiasis. It was suggested that the presence of a diverticulum affected the flow in the bile duct by narrowing it from the outside and chronically stimulating the papilla, inducing biliary tract infection and/or the formation of gallstones. As the surgical procedures for juxtapapillary duodenal diverticula, including its indications, have not been established, long term follow up investigations seem necessary.

Bacterial adherence to human gallbladder epithelium

The adherence of Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa to the epithelium of the gallbladders obtained from 32 patients with negative bile culture was quantified by a scanning electron microscope. Of the gallbladders, 5 were histologically normal (group A), 21 had chronic calculus cholecystitis (group B), and 6 had acute calculus cholecystitis (group C). The data were expressed as the mean±S.D. of the numbers of adherent bacteria to 1,000 μm2 of the gallbladder epithelium. The number of adherent E. coli were 0.1±0.2 in group A, 4.2±2.8 in group B, and 9.2±3.3 in group C. A similar result was also observed with P. aeruginasa. The number of adherent bacteria, both of E. coli and P. aeruginosa were significantly higher in group C than in groups A and B, and were also significantly higher in group B compared to group A. The amount of bacterial adherence paralleled that of the degree of epithelial damage, and the normal epithelium proved to have an inhibiting ability. Thus, a secondary bacterial infection is more likely to happen in patients with contaminated bile, and therefore, the treatment for acute cholecystitis should be based either on the results of a bile culture or according to predictive factors for bactibilia.

Postoperative infection prophylaxis for upper gastrointestinal tract surgery—A prospective and comparative randomized study of cefoxitin and ceftizozime

A prospective and randomized clinical study was conducted in order to compare cefoxitin (CFX) and ceftizoxime (CZX) as prophylactic antibiotics. Two hundred and three consecutive cases of elective upper gastrointestinal tract surgery, performed at our institute between January, 1983, and March, 1986, were entered in the trial. The patients were assigned randomly, before surgery, to the CFX or to the CZX group. Two grams of the assigned antibiotic was first administered during surgery and then continued at a dose of 1 gram, every 8 hrs for a total of 4 days. One patient was withdrawn from the study due to an allergic reaction. Both groups were comparable in sex, age, underlying disease, diagnosis, operation, and preoperative laboratory data. There were 18 infections related to the operation in the CFX group, while there were only 3 in the CZX group (p<0.001). The number of unrelated infections in each group was 6 and 6 respectively (NS). No special differences were found between the two groups regarding the kinds of microorganisms isolated, and no significant differences were seen in the adverse effects of either antibiotic. Our study demonstrated that ceftizoxime was more efficient than cefoxitin in preventing postoperative infection, following upper gastrointestinal tract surgery.

Bacteriological study of peritonitis due to perforated duodenal ulcer.

十二指腸潰瘍穿孔例 (63例) について, 手術時採取腹水の細菌学的検討を行い, その他の部位の穿孔例 (175例) と比較した. 腹水中細菌の陽性率は, 結腸穿孔 (陽性率100%) などの下部消化管穿孔と比較し, 十二指腸潰瘍穿孔では44.4%と低く, さらに穿孔より手術までの時間の短いものでは菌陰性例が多かった. 腹水から好気性菌と嫌気性菌が混合で分離される症例は下部消化管穿孔に多く, 十二指腸潰瘍穿孔では好気性菌の単独分離が多かった. 十二指腸潰瘍穿孔の早期手術例では, その病態に細菌が関与することは少ないと考えられた.