Implementation of an Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocol for acute complicated and uncomplicated appendicitis.

BACKGROUND: Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) protocols are well-documented logistic programs in elective surgery but it is still uncertain whether ERAS can benefit emergency patients, because of significant challenges facing its application to emergency surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the implementation of an ERAS protocol for patients with acute appendicitis (AA), both complicated and uncomplicated. METHODS: A prospective observational study was performed at two university hospitals in Spain, between January 2012 and December 2019. Inclusion criteria were patients with diagnosis of AA, undergoing appendectomy following an ERAS protocol of perioperative care. The different items of the ERAS protocol were recorded and their implementation was separately evaluated. Analyzed variables also included postoperative complications, hospital stay and readmission rate. Levels of acute phase reactants were assessed as predictors of implementation for the ERAS protocol. RESULTS: Eight hundred fifty patients were included; 498 males (58.5%) and 302 females (41.5%), with a mean age of 34.95 ± 17 years. The implementation of all the items of the protocol was achieved in 770 patients (90.6%), 86.8% of patients with complicated AA and 93.1% of patients with uncomplicated AA (p = 0.02). Higher preoperative C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were significantly associated with the impossibility of implementing all the items of the ERAS protocol (p < 0.001), establishing a cut-off point at CRP = 13.5 mg/dl. CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of ERAS protocols is safe and feasible in patients with AA. Although the implementation rate of all the items is lower in patients with complicated AA, it can be completed in 86.8% of these patients. CRP levels over 13.5 mg/dl are predictors of difficulties in the implementation of all the items of ERAS protocols.

Preoperative management of obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery: Role of endoscopy and Helicobacter eradication.

BACKGROUND: Obesity is a pandemic disease associated to severe health problems. Management is usually multimodal, but many patients eventually need surgery to reduce weight. Many guidelines recommend endoscopy prior to surgery. This study reviews a series of patients undergoing sleeve gastrectomy to see whether endoscopy performance and histopathological findings influence surgery outcome. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective series of patients undergoing sleeve gastrectomy as bariatric procedure at a single institution. We have reviewed the demographic data, the associated pathologies, endoscopic findings prior to surgery, histopathological findings in the surgical resection specimen and postoperative complication rate. RESULTS: 259 patients fulfilled criteria for the study. Over 70% were women and the mean age was 46.9 (SD 9.8). Preoperative endoscopy was performed in 28.9% of the patients and biopsy only in 19.3%. Helicobacter pylori was detected in 28% of the patients undergoing endoscopy (either in the biopsy or the urease test) and eradicated before surgery in all the patients. Helicobacter pylori was present in 9.7% of the surgical resection specimens and its presence was significantly associated with the development of postoperative complications, mostly staple line leaks (p = 0.01). CONCLUSION: Our study confirms that Helicobacter infection is significantly associated with postoperative complications after sleeve gastrectomy. It is therefore important to detect its presence and eradicate it before surgery.

Effects of a High-Intensity Exercise Program on Weight Regain and Cardio-metabolic Profile after 3 Years of Bariatric Surgery: A Randomized Trial.

Weight regain is one of the most common problems in the long-term after bariatric surgery. It is unknown if high-intensity exercise programs applied in late phases of post-surgical follow-up could counteract this trend. After a 3-year follow-up, 21 patients underwent sleeve gastrectomy were randomized into an exercise group (EG, n = 11), that performed a 5-month supervised exercise program, and a control group (CG, n = 10), that followed the usual care. Body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, glycaemia and blood cholesterol were evaluated before and after the intervention. Finally, the EG repeated the evaluations 2 months after the end of the exercise program. Both groups reached their maximum weight loss at the first year after surgery and showed significant weight regain by the end of the follow-up. After the exercise program, the EG showed reductions in fat mass (-2.5 ± 2.6 kg, P < 0.05), glycaemia (-13.4 ± 8.7 mg·dL-1, P < 0.01) and blood cholesterol (-24.6 ± 29.1 mg·dL-1, P < 0.05), whereas the CG during the same period showed increases in weight (1.5 ± 1.3 kg, P < 0.05) and fat mass (1.8 ± 0.9, P < 0.01). Two months after the end of the program, EG had increases in weight (1.1 ± 1.2 kg, P < 0.05), fat mass (2.6 ± 2.2 kg, P < 0.01), glycaemia (8.2 ± 11.6 mg·dL-1, P < 0.05) and blood cholesterol (20.0 ± 22.1 mg·dL-1, P < 0.05), when compared with the values after the exercise program. Therefore, in the medium-term after sleeve gastrectomy exercise may contribute to prevent weight regain and to reduce fat mass, glycaemia, and blood cholesterol.

Impact of Exercise on Body Composition and Cardiometabolic Risk Factors in Patients Awaiting Bariatric Surgery.

BACKGROUND: The role of exercise to achieve weight reductions in patients awaiting bariatric surgery has been little studied. The aim of this study was to describe the effects of an exercise program on body composition and cardiometabolic risk factors in patients awaiting bariatric surgery. METHODS: Twenty-three patients awaiting bariatric surgery were divided into two groups: (a) an exercise group (EG, n = 12) and (b) a control group (CG, n = 11). Both groups received the usual care prior to surgery, but the EG also performed a 12-week exercise program which combined endurance and resistance training. Body composition, cardiometabolic risk factors, physical fitness, basal metabolic rate, and quality of life were assessed at baseline and at the end of the study. RESULTS: After the exercise program, the EG achieved significant reductions in total weight (- 7.3 ± 4.1 kg, P < 0.01), fat mass (- 7.1 ± 4.7 kg, P < 0.01), and waist circumference (- 5.3 ± 2.1 cm, P < 0.01), while they maintained their fat-free mass and basal metabolic rate levels. Only the EG showed reductions in HbA1c (- 0.4 ± 0.45%, P < 0.05), systolic (- 10.5 ± 12.7 mmHg), and diastolic blood pressure (- 3.9 ± 5.2 mmHg, P < 0.05), as well as a decrease in waist-to-height ratio (- 0.032 ± 0.12, P < 0.01) and an improvement in quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of an exercise program prior to bariatric surgery reduces fat mass and central obesity and improves cardiometabolic risk factors and quality of life, especially in the physical scales. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03613766).

Effects of the application of vitamin E and silicone dressings vs conventional dressings on incisional surgical site infection in elective laparoscopic colorectal surgery: a prospective randomized clinical trial.

AIM: To compare the effect of conventional wound dressings (CD) with vitamin E and silicone (E-Sil) dressings on incisional surgical site infection (SSI) in patients undergoing elective colorectal laparoscopic surgery. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A prospective, randomized study was performed. Patients were assigned at random into two groups: an E-Sil group and a CD group. Incisional SSI, postoperative pain and acute phase reactants were investigated. RESULTS: In total, 120 patients were included in this study (60 in each group). The incisional SSI rate was 3.4% in the E-Sil group and 17.2% in the CD group (P = 0.013). Bacteroides fragilis alone grew in the cultures of infected wounds in the E-Sil group, while cultures for infected wounds in the CD group were polymicrobial. Mean postoperative pain 48 h after surgery was 27.1 [standard deviation (SD) 10.7] mm in the E-Sil group and 41.6 (SD 16.9) mm in the CD group (P < 0.001). White blood cell (WBC) count and C-reactive protein (CRP) level were lower in the E-Sil group, even after the exclusion of patients presenting with postoperative complications. CONCLUSION: Use of an E-sil dressing to cover the Pfannestiel wound after elective laparoscopic colorectal surgery leads to a reduction in the incisional SSI rate, lower postoperative pain, and a decrease in CRP level and WBC count.

Effect on anal pressure of percutaneous posterior tibial nerve stimulation for faecal incontinence.

AIM: Previous studies on percutaneous posterior tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) for faecal incontinence do not report anal pressure changes. In the present study the effect of percutaneous PTNS on anal manometry was determined. METHOD: This was a prospective observational study of patients with faecal incontinence. They underwent one 30-min session of PTNS weekly for 12 consecutive weeks. Patients who showed improvement were given six more sessions at 2-weekly intervals. Anal manometry was performed before and after treatment. Clinical data including the Wexner score, psychological testing, quality of life using the Fecal Incontinence Quality of Life Score and the contents of a continence diary were recorded before and after the procedure. RESULTS: Twenty-four patients were included in the study of whom 17 (70.83%) demonstrated some degree of clinical or manometric improvement at 3 months. Before treatment 18 patients had urgency of <1 min. At 3 and 6 months this had risen to 5 min in 62.5% and 70.83% (P < 0.001). The anal resting pressure increased from 21.7 to 37.6 mmHg (P = 0.021), the maximum squeeze pressure from 58.2 to 72.2 mmHg (P = 0.045) and the Wexner score fell from 15 to 10 (P = 0.018) at 6 months. Predictive factors for a response included fewer than three incontinent episodes per week (P = 0.027). Negative predictive factors included episiotomy and an initial Wexner score of > 12 (P = 0.035). CONCLUSION: Percutaneous PTNS was effective in over 70% of patients in the present study with improvements in urgency, anal pressures and Wexner score.

Gastric diffuse hamartomatous polyposis as unique manifestation of peutz-jeghers syndrome.

INTRODUCTION: Peutz-Jeghers-type hamartomatous polyps are most common in the small intestine, but can also occur in the stomach and large bowel. Gastric polyps usually coexist with hamartomatous polyps in other locations of the gastro-intestinal tract. We present the second case reported in literature of diffuse gastric polyposis without affecting the rest of the gastrointestinal tract. CASE REPORT: A 41-years-old woman complained of repeated, self-limited episodes of hematemesis. She presented with anaemia. An upper gastrointestinal endoscopy revealed multiple polyps in all the gastric surface, whose biopsy diagnosed of hamartomatous polyps. No other polyps were detecting the gastrointestinal tract. The patient underwent a total gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y reconstruction. Pathology revealed a gastric diffuse hamartomatous polyposis. A mis-sense mutation encoding the serine/threonine kinase STK11 gene was been identified, compatible with Peutz Jeghers polyposis.

Fournier gangrene: first manifestation of occult rectal cancer.

Fournier gangrene is a necrotizing fasciitis of the genital and perineal region. Diverse factors predispose to Fournier gangrene, such as diabetes mellitus, ethylism, liver dysfunction, haematological disorders, obesity or recent regional instrumentation. Rectal tumours can also predispose to Fournier gangrene; most of the reported cases are perforated or unresectable colorectal tumours, but some cases of anorectal cancer diagnosed after recovery from Fournier gangrene have also been reported. In these cases, the presence of a rectal tumour at the time of, or prior to, diagnosis of Fournier gangrene could not be ruled out. We present three cases of rectal cancer whose first manifestation was as Fournier gangrene.

Impact of preoperative levels of hemoglobin and albumin on the survival of pancreatic carcinoma.

INTRODUCTION: Pancreatic cancer presents the worst survival rates of all neoplasms. Surgical resection is the only potentially curative treatment, but is associated with high complication rates and outcome is bad even in those resected cases. Therefore, candidates amenable for resection must be carefully selected. Identification of prognostic factors preoperatively may help to improve the treatment of these patients, focusing on individually management based on the expected response. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We perform a retrospective study of 59 patients with histological diagnosis of pancreatic carcinoma between 1999 and 2003, looking for possible prognostic factors. RESULTS: We analyze 59 patients, 32 males and 27 females with a mean age of 63.8 years. All the patients were operated, performing palliative surgery in 32% and tumoral resection in 68%, including pancreaticoduodenectomies in 51% and distal pancreatectomy in 17%. Median global survival was 14 months (Range 1-110).We observed that preoperative levels of hemoglobin under 12 g/dl (p = 0.0006) and serum albumina under 2.8 g/dl (p = 0.021) are associated with worse survival. CONCLUSION: Preoperative levels of hemoglobin and serum albumina may be prognostic indicators in pancreatic cancer.

Endoscopic resection as unique treatment for early colorectal cancer.

Colonoscopic screening in developed countries allows detection and resection of a great number of early colorectal cancers. There is a strong controversy to decide when endoscopic treatment is enough or when surgical resection is necessary. To this contributes the diverse names to define the lesions, the wide number of classifications and the different criteria of each author. We perform an extense literature review, aiming to clarify concepts and unify criteria that can be used as a guide for the treatment of early colorectal cancer. We conclude that in early colorectal cancer arising in pedunculated polyps (0-Ip), mucosal endoscopic resection would be indicated as only treatment in Haggitt levels 1, 2 and 3, tumors smaller than 2 cm, well- or moderately differentiated, without vascular or lymphatic affection, with submucosal infiltration lower than 1 microm from the muscularis mucosae and maximal submucosal width lower than 4 microm, and undergoing en bloc resection. In sessile polyps (0-Is) or non-polypoideal elevated (0-IIa) or plain (0-IIb) lesions, recommendations will be similar, without applicability of Haggitt levels.

Paraesophageal hiatal hernia. Open vs. laparoscopic surgery.

BACKGROUND: paraesophageal hiatal hernia represents 5-10% of hiatal hernias. Its importance is based on the severe complications it may have, including gastric volvulus, and surgical treatment is recommended when a diagnosis is established. MATERIAL AND METHODS: a retrospective study of all patients who underwent surgery for paresophageal hernia between 1985 and 2007. RESULTS: we studied 90 cases, 68 females and 22 males with a median age of 67.6 years (37-96). Forty-five patients reported pyrosis, 34 epigastric postprandial pain, and 15 dysphagia; eight patients were diagnosed with gastric volvulus. Eighty-one patients underwent elective surgery and 9 emergency surgery. Forty-seven cases underwent an open procedure and 43 a laparoscopic one; 5 (11.6%) of them required conversion. The techniques performed were D Or fundoplication in 35 cases, Nissen in 35, Toupet in 14, simple hiatal closure in 2, Narbona in 1, and Lortat-Jakob in 1; in 10 patients a mesh was placed. The complication rate for open procedure was 10.6 and 9.5% for the laparoscopic one (p > 0.05). Median hospital stay was 9.1 days for the open procedure and 3.4 for the laparoscopic one (p < 0.05). As follow-up, we analyzed 84 patients. After a median follow-up of 12 years (1-19), 15 patients were still symptomatic (17.8%), with recurrence in 8 cases (5 required reoperation). The satisfaction rate was 95.5%. CONCLUSION: equivalent results were observed after laparoscopic and open surgery and a significant shorter hospital stay in the laparoscopic one. Therefore, we think that laparoscopic surgery should be considered as the election procedure for paraesophageal hiatal hernia.

Jejunal and bladder perforation: complication of intravesical Nd-YAG laser irradiation of bladder tumour.

Nd-YAG laser coagulation is a therapeutic method for the treatment of refractory superficial bladder cancer. Complications resulting from its use are uncommon. We report a case of jejunal and bladder perforation 24 h after Nd-YAG bladder irradiation of a recurrent bladder tumour.

Spontaneous rectus sheath hematoma: a case report.

Spontaneous rectus sheath hematoma is an uncommon condition which usually presents as acute abdomen, mimicking other abdominal disorders. Management must be initially conservative, but surgery is indicated in progressive hematomas. We present a case report of rectus sheath hematoma conservatively managed.

Ischaemic caecal necrosis.

Isolated ischaemic caecal necrosis is an unusual event. Because right colon location is less frequent than left one, it may not be considered in the differential diagnosis of right lower quadrant pain. With the typical symptoms (right-sided abdominal pain and tenderness), patients are suspected of having either appendicitis or caecal carcinoma. CT-scan images of caecal wall thickening are often misinterpretated as acecal neoplasm or abscess. We present a case of isolated ischaemic caecal necrosis misinterpretated as a caecal neoplasm.

Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours.

INTRODUCTION: Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumours (PNT) are infrequent epithelial neoplasms associated with a better outcome than pancreatic adenocarcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We analysed our 22 years of experience in managing PNT. Forty-nine patients (27 women and 22 men) with a mean age of 49 years were studied. There were 28 insulinomas, eight glucagonomas, three gastrinomas, one VIPoma and one carcinoid. Eight patients presented with nonfunctional tumours. Enucleation was performed in 20 patients, distal pancreatectomy in 16, middle pancreatic resection in four, cephalic pancreatoduodenectomy in two and total pancreatoduodenectomy in one. In six patients, the tumour was not resected. RESULTS: Postoperative complication rate was 22%: six pancreatic fistulas, three intra-abdominal collections, one remnant pancreatitis and one pancreatic pseudocyst. There was no mortality. 39 cases showed benign histologic features and ten malignant ones. Symptomatic palliation was achieved in 94% of the cases. Five patients presented recurrences: three liver metastases and two pancreatic recurrences. Actuarial mean survival was 163 months and was longer in insulinomas, in those tumours completely resected and in tumours with benign histological features. CONCLUSION: Conservative surgery of the pancreas is preferred, but aggressive surgery is indicated when the primary tumour can be controlled. Despite of minimising pancreatic resection, there is a high complication rate, mainly pancreatic fistulas, though they can often be conservatively managed. Insulinomas are the PNT with better outcome; those completely resected also associate a better prognosis.

[Causes of conversion in laparoscopic surgery for gastroesophageal reflux disease: an analysis of our experience]. / Causas de conversión en la cirugía laparoscópica de la enfermedad por reflujo gastroesofágico: análisis de nuestra experiencia.

BACKGROUND: since its introduction in 1991 laparoscopic antireflux surgery has gained great success and popularity among surgeons, and now it is the gold standard for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). AIM: to identify and evaluate the causes of conversion in the laparoscopic surgery of GERD and hiatus hernia. MATERIAL AND METHODS: since January 1993 to August 2007 606 laparoscopic antireflux procedures were performed in our hospital. There were 296 women and 310 men with a median age of 53.5 years. The main indication for surgery was evidence of intractable or recurrent GERD symptoms after adequate medical treatment with associated hiatal hernia. The preoperative workup included manometry, pH-metry, oral endoscopy, and barium swallow. The surgical technique was mainly the Nissen-Rossetti procedure. RESULTS: mean postoperative hospital stay was 2.7 days. The operation had to be converted to an open procedure in 43 cases (7%). Conversions were more frequent in the first decade of the learning curve (26 vs. 17, p < 0.016), and fewer among the group of experts in advanced laparoscopic surgery (15 vs. 28, p < 0.017). In 17 cases conversions were due to an intraoperative complication whereas in 26 cases a conversion was done because of technical difficulties. Esophageal perforation and pneumothorax rates were 0.8 and 1%, respectively, and mortality and morbidity rates were 0.1 and 12%. CONCLUSION: the rate of conversion is acceptable and significantly decreases with surgeon experience.

Massive low gastrointestinal bleeding due to a Dieulafoy rectal lesion.

Massive low gastrointestinal bleedings are often difficult diagnostically and in terms of management. Sometimes, it is not possible to identify the bleeding point after performing diverse diagnostic tests and the patient undergoes a blind subtotal colectomy. With rectal bleeding, this form of surgery is completely useless, as it will not solve the cause of the haemorrhage. The Dieulafoy lesion has been widely described in the stomach, but in the rectum is a very rare entity that can cause massive lower gastrointestinal bleeding. In the literature, there are only 25 described cases of rectal Dieulafoy lesion.