Robotic Versus Open Liver Resection in Hepatocarcinoma: Surgical and Oncological Outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Minimally invasive approaches are spreading in every field of surgery, including liver surgery. However, studies comparing robotic hepatectomy with the conventional open approach regarding oncologic outcomes for hepatocellular carcinoma are limited. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed demographics characteristics, pathologic features, surgical, and oncological outcomes of patients who underwent robotic and conventional open liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma. RESULTS: No significant differences in demographics features, tumor size, tumor location, and type of liver resection were found. The morbidity rate was similar, 23% for the open group versus 17% of the robotic group (P=0.605). Perioperative data analysis showed a greater estimated blood loss in patients who underwent open resection, if compared with robotic group (P=0.003). R0 resection and disease-free resection margins showed no statistically significant differences. The 3-year disease-free survival of the robotic group was comparable with that of the open group (54% vs. 37%; P=0.592), as was the 3-year overall survival (87% vs. 78%; P=0.203). CONCLUSIONS: The surgical and the oncological outcomes seem to be comparable between minimally invasive and open hepatectomy. Robotic liver resections are effective, and do not compromise the oncological outcome, representing a reasonable alternative to the open approach.

Single-centre comparison of robotic and open pancreatoduodenectomy: a propensity score-matched study.

BACKGROUND: Pancreatoduodenectomy for pancreatic head and periampullary cancers is still associated with high perioperative morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to compare the short-term outcomes of robot-assisted pancreatoduodenectomy (RAPD) and open pancreatoduodenectomy (OPD) performed in a high-volume centre. METHODS: A single-centre, prospective database was used to retrospectively compare the early outcomes of RAPD procedures to standard OPD procedures completed between January 2014 and December 2018. Of the 121 included patients, 78 underwent RAPD and 43 underwent OPD. After propensity score matching (PSM), 35 RAPD patients were matched with 35 OPD patients with similar preoperative characteristics. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences in most of the baseline demographics and perioperative outcomes in the two groups after PSM optimization with the exception of the operative time (530 min (RAPD) versus 335 min (OPD) post-match, p < 0.000). No differences were found between the two groups in terms of complications (including pancreatic leaks, 11.4% in both OPD and RAPD), perioperative mortality, reoperations or readmissions. Earlier refeeding was obtained in the RAPD group vs. the OPD group (3 vs. 4 days, p = 0.002). Although the differences in the length of the hospital stay and blood transfusions were not statistically significant, both parameters showed a positive trend in favour of RAPD. The number of harvested lymph nodes was similar and oncologically adequate. CONCLUSIONS: RAPD is a safe and oncologically adequate technique to treat malignancies arising from the pancreatic head and periampullary region. Several perioperative parameters resulted in trends favouring RAPD over OPD, at the price of longer operating time. Data should be reinforced with a larger sample to guarantee statistical significance.

Pathological response and outcome after neoadjuvant chemotherapy with DOC (docetaxel, oxaliplatin, capecitabine) or EOF (epirubicin, oxaliplatin, 5-fluorouracil) for clinical T3-T4 non-metastatic gastric cancer.

PURPOSE: In this prospective observational study, we sought to compare the efficacy and safety of docetaxel + oxaliplatin + capecitabine (DOC) with epirubicin + oxaliplatin + 5-fluouracil (EOF) as neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) for clinical T3 or T4 non-metastatic gastric cancer (GC) patients. METHODS: The DOC NAC consisted of docetaxel 35 mg/m2 (days 1-8), oxaliplatin 85 mg/m2 (day 1), and capecitabine 750 mg/m2 twice daily (days 1-14), every 3 weeks. The EOF NAC consisted of intravenous (IV) epirubicin 50 mg/m2 combined with IV oxaliplatin 130 mg/m2 on day 1 and continuous infusion 5-fluouracil 750 mg/m2 on days 1-5, every 3 weeks. After 4 cycles of NAC or upon progression during chemotherapy, patients underwent gastrectomy with standard D2 or D3 lymphadenectomy. Pathological complete response rate per Becker tumor regression grading system was the primary endpoint and the secondary endpoints included progression-free survival (2-yr PFS) and 2-year overall survival (2-yr OS) and tolerability. RESULTS: Overall, we identified 63 patients with T3-4 non-metastatic GC starting either NAC regimen between January 2010 and December 2017 at our Institution: 34 in the DOC group and 29 in EOF group. Thirty patients (88%) in the DOC group and 22 (76%) in the EOF group completed the 4 planned cycles of NAC. Fifty-seven patients received surgery. Results indicated no statistical significant differences between the two groups, and only a trend for some better data in favour of the DOC group. The R0 resection rate was 90.6% and 88.0% for the DOC and EOF cohorts, respectively. The pathological complete response rate was 6.2% in the DOC group and 4.0% in the EOF group. Becker 1-2 pathological response was found in 46.8% of the DOC cohort and 28.0% of the EOF cohort (p = .14). The 2-yr PFS rate was 54.1% for DOC vs. 41.4% for EOF (p = .14) and the 2-yr OS rate was 80.8% for DOC vs. 58.6% for EOF (p = .05). Neutropenia was the most common grade ≥3 toxicity and occurred in 8 (23.5%) patients of the DOC group and 10 (34.4%) patients of the EOF group (p = .33). CONCLUSIONS: These findings seem to confirm the feasibility of NAC for clinically T3 and T4 non-metastatic GC and, despite no statistical significant difference was documented, suggest a trend for better activity and tolerability for the docetaxel-based regimen (DOC) compared to the epirubicin-based combination (EOF).

Feasibility of modified docetaxel, oxaliplatin, capecitabine followed by capecitabine as maintenance chemotherapy as first-line therapy for patients with metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal cancer.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of modified docetaxel, oxaliplatin, capecitabine (DOC) combination chemotherapy, followed by maintenance capecitabine as first-line therapy for patients with metastatic gastric or gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) cancer. Treatment consisted of docetaxel 35 mg/m (days 1-8), l-OHP 85 mg/m (day 1), and capecitabine 750 mg/m twice daily (days 1-14), every 3 weeks. After six cycles of DOC, patients who did not progress received maintenance treatment with three-weekly capecitabine 1000 mg/m twice daily (days 1-14), until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Six-month disease control rate (DCR) was the primary endpoint and overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS) and safety were the secondary endpoints. The Kaplan-Meier method was applied to estimate OS and PFS. Between July 2014 and September 2017, 37 patients with metastatic gastric or GEJ cancer were enrolled at our institution. Upon completion of the DOC regimen, 35 patients (94.5%) received capecitabine as maintenance chemotherapy for a median of 7 cycles (range, 3-14 cycles). The six-month DCR was 83.7% [95% confidence interval (CI), 71.8-95.6%], median PFS was 8.2 months (95% CI, 6.3-9.8 months), and median OS was 14.4 months (95% CI, 11.7-18.6 months). During DOC chemotherapy, the most common grade 3-4 adverse events were neutropenia (29.7%), anemia (10.8%), and diarrhea (10.8%). During maintenance treatment, toxicity was sporadic and mainly of grade 1-2. Modified DOC followed by capecitabine as maintenance chemotherapy seems to be an active and well tolerated first-line treatment strategy for patients with metastatic gastric and GEJ cancer.

The Cholegas trial: long-term results of prophylactic cholecystectomy during gastrectomy for cancer-a randomized-controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of cholelithiasis has been shown to be higher for patients after gastrectomy than for the general population, due to vagal branch damage and gastrointestinal reconstruction. The aim of this trial was to evaluate the need for routine concomitant prophylactic cholecystectomy (PC) during gastrectomy for cancer. METHODS: A multicenter, randomized, controlled trial was conducted between November 2008 and March 2017. Of the total 130 included patients, 65 underwent PC and 65 underwent standard gastric surgery only for curable cancers. The primary endpoint was cholelithiasis-free survival after gastrectomy for gastric adenocarcinoma. Cholelithiasis was detected by ultrasound exam. RESULTS: After a median follow-up of 62 months, eight patients (12.3%) in the control group developed biliary abnormalities (four cases of gallbladder calculi and four cases of biliary sludge), with only three (4.6%) being clinically relevant (two cholecystectomies needed, one acute pancreatitis). One patient in the PC group had asymptomatic biliary dilatation during sonography after surgery. The cholelithiasis-free survival did not show statistical significance between the two groups (P = 0.267). The number needed to treat with PC to avoid reoperation for cholelithiasis was 1:32.5. CONCLUSIONS: Concomitant PC during gastric surgery for malignancies, although reducing the absolute number of biliary abnormalities, has no significant impact on the natural course of patients.

Robotic distal pancreatectomy with selective closure of pancreatic duct: surgical outcomes.

Pancreatic fistula is the main post-operative complication of distal pancreatectomy associated with other further complications, such as intra-abdominal abscesses, wound infection, sepsis, electrolyte imbalance, malabsorption and hemorrhage. Surgeons have tried various techniques to close the stump of the remaining pancreas, but the controversy regarding the impact of stapler closure and suture closure of the pancreatic stump is far from resolved. In this study, we reported our technique and results of robotic assisted distal pancreatectomy with ultrasound identification and consequent selective closure of pancreatic duct. Twenty-one patients underwent consecutive robotic-assisted distal pancreatectomy were included in our study. We describe our technique and analyzed the operative and peri-operative data including mean operative time, intra-operative bleeding, blood transfusions necessity, conversion rate, mortality and morbidity rate, pancreatic fistula rate and grade, time of refeeding and canalization, length of hospital stay and readmission. Median operative time was 260 min. No conversion occurred. Estimated blood loss was 100 mL (range 50-200). No blood transfusions were performed. Mortality rate was 0%. One (5%) patient had a major complication, while 9 (43%) patients had minor complications (grade I). Three (14%) patients developed pancreatic fistula (grade B), while two (10%) patients had a biochemical leak. No late pancreatic fistula and re-operation occurred. The refeeding was started at second day (range 1^-6^) and the median canalization time was 4 days (range 2-7). The median hospital stay was 6 days (range 3-25) with a readmission rate of 0%. Robotic distal pancreatectomy can be considered safe and feasible. Our technique is easily reproducible, with good surgical results.

Robotic enucleations of pancreatic benign or low-grade malignant tumors: preliminary results and comparison with robotic demolitive resections.

BACKGROUND: The incidental detection of benign to low-grade malignant small pancreatic neoplasms increased in the last decades. The surgical management of these patients is still under debate. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the safety and feasibility of robotic enucleations and to compare the outcomes with non-parenchymal sparing robotic resections. METHODS: The study included a total of 25 patients. Nine of them underwent a robotic enucleation (EN Group) and 16 patients received a robotic demolitive resection (DR Group). Perioperative and medium-term outcomes were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: Patients' baseline characteristics were similar in the two groups except for presence of symptoms and tumor size, due to the inclusion criteria. Operative time was significantly shorter and postoperative results were better for EN group, including a significant shorter hospitalization (5 vs. 8 days, p = 0.027), reduced pancreatic leaks (22% vs. 50%, p = 0.287) and a better preservation of glandular function (100% vs. 62.5%, p = 0.066). Mortality rate was zero in both groups, with all patients free from disease at a median follow-up of 18 months. CONCLUSIONS: The risks of under/overtreatment remain still unavoidable for benign to low-grade malignant small pancreatic neoplasms. Simple enucleation should be performed whenever oncological appropriate, to achieve the best postoperative outcomes. The adoption of robotic technique might widen the indications for parenchymal sparing, minimally invasive surgery.

Initial Experience With Robotic Pancreatic Surgery: Technical Feasibility and Oncological Implications.

Robotic surgery has been introduced in the field of minimally invasive surgery to improve the handling of high-demanding procedures with encouraging results. We aimed to evaluate the clinical safety and the oncological adequacy of robot-assisted pancreatic surgery by analyzing a consecutive series in terms of surgical and oncological outcomes. A total of 53 consecutive cases including 36 pancreatoduodenectomies (PD) and 14 distal pancreatectomies (DP) were evaluated. The overall postoperative morbidity and mortality were 32% and 3.8%, respectively. Radical resection was achieved in 93.7% of PD and 100% of DP, with a mean number of harvested lymph nodes of 29.8 for PD and 20.5 for DP. The 3-year cumulative overall survival was 44.2% and 73.9% for patient with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and nonductal malignancy, respectively. Robotic technology may be useful to reproduce conventional open pancreatic surgery with a minimally invasive approach, overcoming some of the intrinsic limitations of conventional laparoscopy.

Minimally invasive surgical approach to pancreatic malignancies.

Pancreatic surgery for malignancy is recognized as challenging for the surgeons and risky for the patients due to consistent perioperative morbidity and mortality. Furthermore, the oncological long-term results are largely disappointing, even for those patients who experience an uneventfully hospital stay. Nevertheless, surgery still remains the cornerstone of a multidisciplinary treatment for pancreatic cancer. In order to maximize the benefits of surgery, the advent of both laparoscopy and robotics has led many surgeons to treat pancreatic cancers with these new methodologies. The reduction of postoperative complications, length of hospital stay and pain, together with a shorter interval between surgery and the beginning of adjuvant chemotherapy, represent the potential advantages over conventional surgery. Lastly, a better cosmetic result, although not crucial in any cancerous patient, could also play a role by improving overall well-being and patient self-perception. The laparoscopic approach to pancreatic surgery is, however, difficult in inexperienced hands and requires a dedicated training in both advanced laparoscopy and pancreatic surgery. The recent large diffusion of the da Vinci(®) robotic platform seems to facilitate many of the technical maneuvers, such as anastomotic biliary and pancreatic reconstructions, accurate lymphadenectomy, and vascular sutures. The two main pancreatic operations, distal pancreatectomy and pancreaticoduodenectomy, are approachable by a minimally invasive path, but more limited interventions such as enucleation are also feasible. Nevertheless, a word of caution should be taken into account when considering the increasing costs of these newest technologies because the main concerns regarding these are the maintenance of all oncological standards and the lack of long-term follow-up. The purpose of this review is to examine the evidence for the use of minimally invasive surgery in pancreatic cancer (and less aggressive tumors), with particular attention to the oncological results and widespread reproducibility of each technique.

Laparoscopic approach to gastrointestinal malignancies: toward the future with caution.

After the rapid acceptance of laparoscopy to manage multiple benign diseases arising from gastrointestinal districts, some surgeons started to treat malignancies by the same way. However, if the limits of laparoscopy for benign diseases are mainly represented by technical issues, oncologic outcomes remain the foundation of any procedures to cure malignancies. Cancerous patients represent an important group with peculiar aspects including reduced survival expectancy, worsened quality of life due to surgery itself and adjuvant therapies, and challenging psychological impact. All these issues could, potentially, receive a better management with a laparoscopic surgical approach. In order to confirm such aspects, similarly to testing the newest weapons (surgical or pharmacologic) against cancer, long-term follow-up is always recommendable to assess the real benefits in terms of overall survival, cancer-free survival and quality of life. Furthermore, it seems of crucial importance that surgeons will be correctly trained in specific oncologic principles of surgical oncology as well as in modern miniinvasive technologies. Therefore, laparoscopic treatment of gastrointestinal malignancies requires more caution and deep analysis of published evidences, as compared to those achieved for inflammatory bowel diseases, gastroesophageal reflux disease or diverticular disease. This review tries to examine the evidence available to date for the use of laparoscopy and robotics in malignancies arising from the gastrointestinal district.

hERG1 channels regulate VEGF-A secretion in human gastric cancer: clinicopathological correlations and therapeutical implications.

PURPOSE: hERG1 channels are aberrantly expressed in several types of human cancers, where they affect different aspects of cancer cell behavior. A thorough analysis of the functional role and clinical significance of hERG1 channels in gastric cancer is still lacking. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: hERG1 expression was tested in a wide (508 samples) Italian cohort of surgically resected patients with gastric cancer, by immunohistochemistry and real-time quantitative PCR. The functional link between hERG1 and the VEGF-A was studied in different gastric cancer cell lines. The effects of hERG1 and VEGF-A inhibition were evaluated in vivo in xenograft mouse models. RESULTS: hERG1 was positive in 69% of the patients and positivity correlated with Lauren's intestinal type, fundus localization of the tumor, G1-G2 grading, I and II tumor-node-metastasis stage, and VEGF-A expression. hERG1 activity modulated VEGF-A secretion, through an AKT-dependent regulation of the transcriptional activity of the hypoxia inducible factor. Treatment of immunodeficient mice xenografted with human gastric cancer cells, with a combination of hERG1 blockers and anti-VEGF-A antibodies, impaired tumor growth more than single-drug treatments. CONCLUSION: Our results show that hERG1 (i) is aberrantly expressed in human gastric cancer since its early stages; (ii) drives an intracellular pathway leading to VEGF-A secretion; (iii) can be exploited to identify a gastric cancer patients' group where a combined treatment with antiangiogenic drugs and noncardiotoxic hERG1 inhibitors could be proposed.

Helicobacter pylori secreted peptidyl prolyl cis, trans-isomerase drives Th17 inflammation in gastric adenocarcinoma.

Helicobacter pylori infection is characterized by an inflammatory infiltrate, consisting mainly of neutrophils and T cells. This study was undertaken to evaluate the type of gastric T cell response elicited by the secreted peptidyl prolyl cis, trans-isomerase of H. pylori (HP0175) in patients with distal gastric adenocarcinoma. The cytokine profile and the effector functions of gastric tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) specific for HP0175 was investigated in 20 patients with distal gastric adenocarcinoma and H. pylori infection. The helper function of HP0175-specific TILs for monocyte MMP-2, MMP-9, and VEGF production was also investigated. TILs cells from H. pylori infected patients with distal gastric adenocarcinoma produced Interleukin (IL)-17 and IL-21 in response to HP0175. HP0175-specific TILs showed poor cytolytic activity while expressing helper activity for monocyte MMP-2, MMP-9 and VEGF production. These findings indicate that HP0175 is able to drive gastric Th17 response. Thus, HP0175, by promoting pro-inflammatory low cytotoxic TIL response, matrix degradation and pro-angiogenic pathways, may provide a link between H. pylori and gastric cancer.

COUP-TFII in pancreatic adenocarcinoma: clinical implication for patient survival and tumor progression.

Despite the accumulating knowledge of alterations in pancreatic cancer molecular pathways, no substantial improvements in the clinical prognosis have been made and this malignancy continues to be a leading cause of cancer death in the Western World. The orphan nuclear receptor COUP-TFII is a regulator of a wide range of biological processes and it may exert a pro-oncogenic role in cancer cells; interestingly, indirect evidences suggest that the receptor could be involved in pancreatic cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate the expression of COUP-TFII in human pancreatic tumors and to unveil its role in the regulation of pancreatic tumor growth. We evaluated COUP-TFII expression by immunohistochemistry on primary samples. We analyzed the effect of the nuclear receptor silencing in human pancreatic cancer cells by means of shRNA expressing cell lines. We finally confirmed the in vitro results by in vivo experiments on nude mice. COUP-TFII is expressed in 69% of tested primary samples and correlates with the N1 and M1 status and clinical stage; Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analysis show that it may be an independent prognostic factor of worst outcome. In vitro silencing of COUP-TFII reduces the cell growth and invasiveness and it strongly inhibits angiogenesis, an effect mediated by the regulation of VEGF-C. In nude mice, COUP-TFII silencing reduces tumor growth by 40%. Our results suggest that COUP-TFII might be an important regulator of the behavior of pancreatic adenocarcinoma, thus representing a possible new target for pancreatic cancer therapy.

Ex vivo analysis of pancreatic cancer-infiltrating T lymphocytes reveals that ENO-specific Tregs accumulate in tumor tissue and inhibit Th1/Th17 effector cell functions.

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is an aggressive disease with dismal prognosis. Surgical resection is the recommended treatment for long-term survival, but patients with resectable PC are in the minority (with a 5-year survival rate of 20 %). Therefore, development of novel therapeutic strategies, such as anti-PC immunotherapy, is crucial. α-Enolase (ENO1) is an enzyme expressed on the surface of pancreatic cancer cells and is able to promote cell migration and cancer metastasis. The capacity of ENO1 to induce an immune response in PC patients renders it a true tumor-associated antigen. In this study, we characterized the effector functions of ENO1-specific T cells isolated from PC patients, and we specifically evaluated the successful role of intra-tumoral T helper 17 (Th17) cells and the inhibitory role of regulatory T (Tregs) cells in respectively promoting or reducing the cancer-specific immune response. In this ex vivo study, we have demonstrated, for the first time, that ENO1-specific Th17 cells have a specific anti-cancer effector function in PC patients, and that there are decreased levels of these cells in cancer compared to healthy mucosa. Conversely, there are elevated levels of ENO1-specific Tregs in PC patients which lead to inhibition of the antigen-specific effector T cells, thus highlighting a possible role in promoting PC progression. These results may be relevant for the design of novel immunotherapeutic strategies in pancreatic cancer.

Routine use of simultaneous laparoendoscopic approach in patients with confirmed gallbladder and bile duct stones: fit for laparoscopy fit for "rendezvous".

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present work was to determine the feasibility and efficacy, in terms of equipment coordination and timing, of the laparoendoscopic intraoperative rendezvous technique (RVT) for the treatment of gallbladder and common bile duct stones (CBDS). METHODS: The procedure was considered in 269 unselected patients with a suspicion or preoperative imaging demonstration of CBDS who were fit for laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). Common bile duct stones were confirmed by intraoperative laparoscopic cholangiography (IOC) in only 113 of these patients (42 %). In 17 (15 %) patients the planned procedure was aborted because of organizational problems, mainly the unavailability of endoscopists in the urgent setting. The remaining 96 patients (84 %) underwent a formal attempt at RVT. Intraoperative endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC) was performed, during LC, by means of a guidewire that reached the duodenum through the cystic duct. RESULTS: In 18 patients (19 %) the complete procedure failed, either because of difficulty in passing the guidewire through the papilla or because of other technical difficulties that required conversion to laparotomy. An intraoperative ERC was completed in six patients in the classical way (no guidewire) without conversion. No mortality and few complications were recorded (3 % overall: 1 perforation and 2 cholangitis). Retained stones were successively detected in 6 patients (6 %) and successfully retreated by a further ERC. Globally, the one-stage procedure (with and without the guidewire) was possible in 84 of 96 patients (87 %). CONCLUSIONS: The RVT appears to be effective and safe as it was performed at our institution, with an overall percentage of definitive success (passed guide wire and no further ERC) of 81 %. The RVT should be considered as a good option for the treatment of simultaneous gallstones and CBDS.

The Cholegas Study: safety of prophylactic cholecystectomy during gastrectomy for cancer: preliminary results of a multicentric randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Cholelithiasis is more frequent in patients after gastrectomy, due to dissection of vagal branches and gastrointestinal reconstruction. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial was conducted from November 2008 to March 2012. Patients were randomized into two groups: prophylactic cholecystectomy (PC) and standard gastric surgery only (SS) for curable cancers. We planned three end points: evaluation of the number of patients who developed symptoms and needed further surgery for cholelithiasis after standard gastric cancer surgery, evaluation of the incidence of cholelithiasis overall after standard gastric cancer surgery and perioperative complications or costs of prophylactic cholecystectomy. The present study answers to the last end point only. RESULTS: After 40 months from the beginning of study, 172 patients were eligible from 9 Centers. Ten patients refused consent and 32 were excluded due to flawing of inclusion criteria (not confirmed adenocarcinomas and no R0 surgery). Therefore, final analysis included 130 patients: 65 in PC group and 65 in SS. Among PC group, 12 patients had surgical complications during the perioperative period; only 1 biliary leakage, conservatively treated, might have been caused by prophylactic cholecystectomy. 6 patients had surgical complications in SS group. One postoperative death occurred in PC group due to pulmonary embolism. Differences were not statistically significant. Similarly, no differences were significant in duration of surgery, blood loss, hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS: Concomitant cholecystectomy during standard surgery for gastric malignancies seemed to add no extra perioperative morbidity, mortality and costs to the sample included in the study.

Laparoscopic appendectomy performed by residents and experienced surgeons.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic appendectomy is widely performed by surgical residents, but its changing indications and outcomes have been poorly investigated. The aim of this study was to examine whether a difference exists in indications and outcomes between laparoscopic appendectomies performed by residents and those performed by experienced surgeons. METHODS: Between 1999 and 2007, 218 laparoscopic appendectomies were performed and recorded. Data were analyzed to compare operations performed by residents with those by experienced surgeons in terms of indications for surgery and severity of disease. Moreover, laparoscopic appendectomies were thoroughly compared regarding outcomes and complications. RESULTS: The residents had fewer conversions with laparoscopic appendectomy (8% vs 17%, P=0.04), and similar complication rates (12% vs 13%, P=0.16), compared with experienced surgeons. The median operating time was also comparable (67 minutes vs 60 minutes, P=0.23). However, patients operated on by residents had more emergencies (86% vs 70%, P=0.009), included more foreigners (27% vs 15%, P=0.03), and had intermediate to severe diseases, (81 vs 52%, P<0.001) than patients did operated on by experienced surgeons. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical residents performed more emergency laparoscopic appendectomies on foreign patients suffering from intermediate to severe diseases compared with experienced surgeons, with comparable surgical outcomes and lower conversion rates.

Comparison of laparoscopic and open repair for primary ventral hernias.

We designed a retrospective clinical trial comparing laparoscopic primary ventral hernia repair (LPVHR) and open traditional repair (OPVHR). Demographics, perioperative data, results, and follow-up were examined to determine if there was any difference in the main outcomes. From January 2000 to December 2006, 28 consecutive, unselected patients, who successfully underwent LPVHR, were matched with 36 patients, who received OPVHR (with mesh) during the same period. The operating room records, clinical files, and outpatient sheets were examined. Patient demographics, results, and follow-up were compared in the 2 groups. Demographic characteristics, site of hernia, concomitant surgery, and defect size were comparable between the 2 groups, but the proportion of urgent procedures was higher in OPVHR patients (25% vs. 4%; P=0.03). The overall complication rates were similar, with some specific differences, whereas analgesic requirement and hospital stay were also comparable. The operative times were significantly longer for the LPVHR group (70 min vs. 35 min; P<0.000). Four recurrences were noted in both OPVHR and LPVHR patients, 11% versus 14%, respectively, with no significant difference (P=0.67). LPVHR seemed to be as safe as the OVHR in this study, although LPVHR increased operative time. The complications of each method should be taken into consideration before making the choice of the surgical approach.