Utility of 18 fludeoxyglucose in preoperative positon-emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) in the early diagnosis of exocrine pancreatic cancer: A study of 139 resected cases. / Utilidad de la 18-fluorodeoxiglucosa en la tomografía por emisión de positrones-tomografía computarizada (PET-TC) preoperatoria en el diagnóstico precoz del cáncer de páncreas exocrino: estudio en 139 casos resecados.

INTRODUCTION: In pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDA), surgical resection is the only curative treatment, but due to its late clinical presentation only 15-25% patients are candidates for curative resection. The aim of this prospective, single-center study is to determine the diagnostic utility of preoperative PET-CT for early detection of PDA and early panIN lesions. METHODS: We studied the histopathological features of PDA and different panIN lesions in 139 surgical samples from patients undergoing pancreatic resection (from 2010-2014), comparing these results with preoperative PET-CT and MDCT study. For tumor diagnosis in PET-CT maximum standard SUV 2.5 was used. Pancreatic baseline SUVmax is the maximum uptake of the radiotracer 18-2FDG on the ROI curve determined for the area of the normal pancreas after pathological reassessment with areas not affected by tumours or preneoplastic lesions. Tumour Uptake Index is the ratio between the tumour SUVmax and pancreatic baseline SUVmax. RESULTS: Using an standard maximum SUV value of 2.5, PET-CT sensitivity was 77.7% (108 of the 139 cases) against 75.5% (105 of the 139 cases) of MDCT. But when we combined this value with maximum SUV of normal pancreatic tissue from each patient, PET-CT sensitivity improved its value to 94.9%. CONCLUSION: A combination of studies of PET-CT in tumor and non-tumor tissue of each patient might be a very useful diagnostic tool not only for preoperative diagnosis of PDA, but also for early panIN lesions.

Prognostic factors in resected pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours: Experience in 95 patients. / Factores pronósticos de los tumores neuroendocrinos de páncreas resecados. Experiencia en 95 pacientes.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to analyze prognostic factors for survival and recurrence in patients with resected pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNT). METHODS: Medical records of 95 patients with resected PNT were retrospectively reviewed. The variables studied were: age, sex, form of presentation (sporadic/familial tumors), functionality, type of tumor, localization, type of surgery, tumor size, multifocal tumors and recurrent rate. The new WHO classification (2010) was used. RESULTS: There were 45 men and 50 women. Mean age was 46.8 years. Regarding the mode of presentation, it was sporadic in 66 patients (69.8%) and 29 cases were familial neuroendocrine tumors (30.2%) in association with MEN 1 syndrome. The 59% of patients suffered from non-functional tumors and 41% were functional: 20 insulinoma, 16 gastrinoma, and 3 glucagonoma. Distal pancreatectomy was the most common surgical procedure, followed by tumor enucleation in 19 patients. According to the WHO classification, 59 patients had a PNT G1, 24 PNT G2 and 12 with a poorly-differentiated carcinoma, respectively. The 5-year survival in well-differentiated tumors was 100%, regardless of the functionality. Sporadic PNT are more commonly unifocal (P<0.001), associating liver metastasis. Survival and recurrence rates after a mean follow-up of 85.3 months were 65.8 and 24%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience, WHO classification was an independent prognostic factor in PNT survival.

Groove pancreatitis vs. pancreatic adenocarcinoma: A review of 8 cases. / Pancreatitis del surco versus adenocarcinoma de páncreas: a propósito de 8 casos.

INTRODUCTION: Groove pancreatitis (PS) is an uncommon clinical situation and radiologically it can mimic carcinoma of the periampullary area. The aim of this paper is to study a series of 8 patients who underwent surgery with preoperative diagnosis of pancreatic head mass and subsequent pathological diagnosis of PS. METHODS: In our series, 6 were men and 2 women, with an average age of 51,9 years. Before surgery, all patients had epigastric abdominal pain requiring analgesia at high doses. The preoperative analytical CEA and Ca 19.9 were normal in all patients. Imaging studies showed intrapancreatic solid lesions in 6 of the 8 patients, and in the remaining 2 one papillary mass of 5 and 6cm, respectively, that caused stenosis in the duodenal luz. EUS neoplastic cells were negative in all patients. RESULTS: The immediate postoperative evolution was satisfactory, there are no complications. In our series, no patients have died. The long-term follow-up, in 7 of the 8 patients, has been excellent with disappearance of abdominal pain and improvement of nutritional status. The remaining patient had frequent recurrent episodes of acute pancreatitis, and at 60 months, presented a pseudocyst that has required a Roux-en-Y cystojejunostomy. CONCLUSIONS: PS must be included in the differential diagnosis of pancreatic lesions, which may include carcinoma of the periampullary area and other causes of chronic pancreatitis.

Spontaneous retroperitoneal hematoma in a patient under anticoagulant agents presenting as upper gastrointestinal bleeding.

We present the case of a 44-year-old woman with past history of repeated miscarriage and Budd-Chiari syndrome secondary to primary myelofibrosis. Because of this she was under treatment with oral anticoagulant agents. The patient was admitted in hospital as she presented with gastrointestinal bleeding (melena), asthenia and progressive anemia. In an initial upper endoscopy an extrinsic duodenal compression associated with an ulcer on the posterior face of the first portion of duodenum and upper duodenal knee was observed. In the following days a huge spontaneous retroperitoneal hematoma due to anticoagulation was diagnosed by computed tomography. This was treated with a percutaneous drainage and withdrawal of the antithrombotic drugs. The evolution of the patient was initially satisfactory but she suffered subclavian and jugular vein thrombosis, and reintroduction of anticoagulant agents at the lowest therapeutic doses was required.

[A new surgical technique for extended right hepatectomy: tourniquet in the umbilical fissure and right portal vein occlusion (ALTPS). Clinical case]. / Una nueva técnica quirúrgica para la hepatectomía derecha extendida: torniquete en la cisura umbilical y oclusión portal derecha (ALTPS). Caso clínico.

ALPPS (associating liver partition and portal vein ligation for staged hepatectomy), in 2-stage liver resections, achieves hypertrophy of the functional liver remnant (FLR) in 7 days, and the objective of this technique is the occlusion of the intrahepatic collaterals. In March 2012 we published a new surgical technique associating the insertion of a tourniquet in Cantlie' line and right portal vein ligation (ALTPS: Associating liver tourniquet and right portal vein occlusion for staged hepatectomy). In this paper we present this ALTPS technique placing the tourniquet in the umbilical fissure to obtain hypertrophy of segments II-III. It was performed in a 51 year-old patient with a recurrent right renal hypernephroma which involved all the anatomic right lobe and inferior vena cava. Preoperative FLR was 380 ml (20% of the total volume) increasing 150% at 7 days (to 953 ml, 31% of the total). In the second step, we performed a right trisectionectomy and retrohepatic inferior vena cava resection, replacing it by a 2 cm-ring goretex graft.

[Changes in the diagnosis and therapeutic management of hepatic trauma. A retrospective study comparing 2 series of cases in different (1997-1984 vs. 2001-2008)]. / Cambios en el manejo diagnóstico-terapéutico del traumatismo hepático. Estudio retrospectivo comparando 2 series de casos en periodos diferentes (1997-1984 vs. 2001-2008).

INTRODUCTION: We present a series of 146 cases of hepatic trauma (HT) treated in our hospital over a period of 8 yearsm (2001-2008), and comparing it with a previous series of 92 cases (1977-1984). MATERIAL AND METHOD: The mean age in the current series was 28.6 years and the majority were male. The closed traumas were mainly penetrating, with the most frequent cause being road traffic accidents. RESULTS: The American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) classification was used to evaluate the grade of the hepatic injury. Associated abdominal and /or extra-abdominal injuries were seen in 79.5% of the patients, with the most frequent being chest trauma, compared to bone fractures in the previous series. The most common associated intra-abdominal injury was the spleen in both series. The most used diagnostic technique in the current series was abdominal CT. Simple peritoneal puncture and lavage (PLP) were the most used examinations used in the previous series. Non-surgical treatment (NST) was given in 98 cases and the surgery was indicated in the remaining 48. In the previous series, 97.8% of patients were operated on. In the current series, on the 15 patients with severe liver injuries, 5 right hepatectomies, 2 segmentectomies and 6 packing compressions were performed, with the remaining two dying during surgery due to hepatic avulsion. The overall mortality was 3.4%, being 1% in the NST group and 8.3% in the surgical patients. In the previous series, the overall mortality was 29.3%. CONCLUSIONS: The key factor for using NST is to control haemodynamic stability, leaving surgical treatment for haemodynamically unstable patients.