Long-term follow-up for pilonidal sinus surgery: A review of literature with metanalysis.

BACKGROUND: Sacrococcygeal pilonidal sinus disease (PSD) is a common chronic inflammation of the natal cleft and presents as an abscess or a chronically discharging, painful sinus tract. The management of chronic PSD is variable, contentious, and problematic. Although many surgical procedures have been tried, the best surgical method remains controversial. The aim of this systematic review with meta-analysis of literature is to provide surgeons an objective instrument of decision through an analysis of recurrence rate of various surgical techniques in a long-term follow-up. METHODS: Systematic literature searches were performed to identify all available studies. According to the pre-specified protocol, all studies reporting a surgical approach to PSD with a minimum follow-up of 5 years were included. RESULTS: Fifteen studies were included in the analysis. The number of patients varied from 50 to 1165 with a mean follow-up from 58.36 to 240 months. The overall incidence of recurrence was of 0.138; the resulting incidence of open healing, midline closure and out-midline closure were of 17.9%, 16.8% and 10% respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Interestingly, our data reveal a rate of relapsing disease higher than the one defined in previous studies both for the overall PSD and for each surgical procedure. A long-term follow-up of at least 5 years, should be considered the gold standard in pilonidal sinus surgery benchmarking. From our results, we can state that open healing and midline closure should not be considered effective for their high frequency of relapse disease and midline primary closure should be preferred.

Comparison between LigaSure™ and Harmonic® in Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy: A Single-Center Experience on 422 Patients.

Background: New laparoscopic devices, such as electrothermal bipolar-activated devices (LigaSure™ (LS)) or ultrasonic systems (Harmonic® scalpel (HS)), have been applied recently to bariatric surgery allowing to reduce blood loss and surgical risks. The aim of this study was to retrospectively compare intraoperative performance of HS and LS, postoperative results, and clinical outcomes in a large cohort of patients undergoing LSG. Methods: Data from 422 morbidly obese patients undergoing LSG in our Bariatric Unit at the Advanced Biomedical Sciences Department of the "Federico II" University of Naples (Italy) between January 2009 and December 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. Subjects were divided into two groups (HS and LS), and operative time, intraoperative complications, and postoperative (within 30 days from surgery) complications were compared. Bleeding from the omentum or from the staple line, use of hemostatic clips, and absorbable hemostat were recorded as intraoperative complications; hemorrhages, abscess formation, gastric leaks, fever, and mortality were considered as postoperative complications. Results: Statistical analysis showed no difference in terms of baseline demographics between the two cohorts. Operative time (48 ± 9 vs 49 ± 6 min, p=0.646) and the rates of intraoperative and postoperative complications did not significantly differ between groups. Conclusion: Harmonic® and LigaSure™ are both useful tools in bariatric surgery, and these two advanced power devices are user-friendly and can facilitate surgeon work; from this point of view, the choice of the energy device should be based on the preference of the surgeon and on the hospital costs policy and availability.

Case report of an uncommon case of drain-site hernia after colorectal surgery.

BACKGROUND: trocar site herniation is a rare but potentially serious complication of laparoscopic surgery. Data about drain site hernia after laparoscopic surgery is scarce and anecdotal. CASE PRESENTATION: we report an uncommon case of drain site hernia in a man undergone laparoscopic left colectomy for a colonic adenocarcinoma who developed small bowel herniation in a 10 mm port site, in which a 24 FR drain was inserted leaving a real free space of 2 mm. DISCUSSION: laparoscopic approach has gained widespread acceptance in each surgical fields because of the perceived better postoperative outcomes in terms of less pain, faster recovery, and lower risk of incisional hernia. However, the risk of trocar site hernia has been known since 1967. Different risk factors for the development of trocar site hernia are described in literature: the trocar diameter and design, preexisting fascial defects, enlargement of a port site to remove a specimen, high blood glucose levels, obesity, increase intra-abdominal pressure as in chronic obstructive airway disease or extensive manipulation of the trocar during surgical intervention, which may enlarge the trocar site and thus induce small bowel herniation. However, the most important recognized risk factor for trocar site hernia is the size of the trocar. CONCLUSIONS: waiting for further studies, the lesson to be learnt from this case report is that, even if the free space after drain positioning is minimal, drain should not be positioned through the 10 mm trocar to allow the closure of fascial defect in order to avoid any herniation.

Case report of a conservative management of cervical esophageal perforation with acrylic glue injection.

BACKGROUND: perforation of the upper aerodigestive tract is a potentially life-threatening condition. The appropriate treatment of cervical esophageal perforation is still controversial. CASE PRESENTATION: we report a case of cervical esophageal perforation that was effectively treated by a conservative management with acrylic glue injection. DISCUSSION: the management of cervical esophageal perforations has been controversial and little studied. Various treatment options, including surgical and nonsurgical management have been advocated, and no gold standard surgical treatment has yet been established. Some authors have recommended immediate surgical intervention, especially in penetrating trauma, conversely, several studies support conservative management. CONCLUSIONS: we consider that the application of acrylic glue can be considered a promising, minimally invasive therapeutic option in the management of cervical esophageal perforation. However, the sufficient accumulation of similarly treated cases is necessary in order to confirm the efficacy and safety of this treatment modality.