Peri-operative outcomes of pancreaticoduodenectomy comparing an isolated Roux loop or single loop for reconstruction: An ambispective observational study.

BACKGROUND: A post-operative pancreatic fistula is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy. We compared two methods of reconstruction of pancreaticojejunal anastomosis, an isolated loop with a single loop, to assess their effects on the incidence and severity of fistula. METHODS: The data was collected in an ambispective manner. The drain fluid was sent for amylase measurement on post-operative day 3 and a fistula was defined and classified according to the 2016 modification of the International Study Group for Pancreatic Surgery definition. The patients were divided into the isolated (Group I) and single (Group II) loop groups and compared for the incidence and severity of clinically relevant fistula along with other parameters. RESULTS: A total of 349 (Group I: 201, Group II: 148) patients were included in the study. The incidence of clinically relevant fistula was comparable (p = 0.206). Grade C fistula was found to be lower in the group I (7 % vs 11.6 %, p = 0.137), in patients with a soft pancreas (8.5 % vs 18.3 %, p = 0.049) and pancreatic duct diameter less than 5 mm (9.8 % vs 17.2 %, p = 0.036). The operative time was lower in Group I than in Group II (438 min vs 478, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: We found that the incidence of clinically relevant fistula was similar in both the groups but the isolated reconstruction method reduced the incidence of severe fistula. In patients with a smaller pancreatic duct, soft pancreas echotexture and obesity, it provides a safer alternative and can be performed in less time than a single loop reconstruction.

Synchronous multiple primary neoplasms of the esophagus, rectosigmoid and central nervous system.

INTRODUCTION: Multiple primary neoplasms (MPN) are rare and can affect any system especially the upper aero-digestive system. They can be simultaneous, synchronous or metachronous. Their management depends on the individual organ system affected and simultaneous resection is possible as shown by T. Suzuki. PRESENTATION OF CASE: We encountered a 77-year-old male who had had malena and constipation for 2 months and on investigation was found to have a rectosigmoid and an esophageal adenocarcinoma as well as a calcified lesion in the brain. He underwent surgery for the rectosigmoid growth only (according to the patient's preference) and received chemotherapy. Unfortunately, he developed acute intestinal obstruction after 2 cycles of chemotherapy and died. DISCUSSION: MPNS are defined as presence of two or more histologically distinct tumours in the same individual. It can be synchronous or metachronous. Various factors like genetic and environmental play crucial role in its development. Management of these depends up on the status of the patient, stage of disease. CONCLUSION: MPNS are rare but their rising trend suggests it should be kept in mind while working up a patient with any malignancy.

A Case Report of Roundworms Causing Intestinal Obstruction in a Child.

Background. Soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections are a common global health issue that affects underprivileged communities without adequate access to clean drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene. Ascaris lumbricoides is the main species that infects humans. Among varied presentations, intestinal obstruction is common among children. Early detection of intestinal obstruction due to STH is critical to prevent severe complications. Here, we present the case of a 10-year-old child with acute intestinal obstruction due to roundworms. Case Report. A 10-year-old boy presented to the emergency department with recurrent abdominal pain, distention, and vomiting for three months with signs of peritonitis on examination. CT scan of the abdomen revealed roundworms in the distal ileum and a cocoon formed by adhesions of small bowel loops. Intraoperatively, worm balls were found in the proximal jejunum and ileum, causing small bowel obstruction, and a diseased segment of ileum had to be resected. The worms were removed, and an ileostomy was created. The patient was treated with albendazole and intravenous antibiotics such as ceftriaxone and metronidazole. An early closure of ileostomy was performed after 20 days. Histopathology showed roundworm eggs in the appendix and small bowel mucosa. Discussion. Ascaris lumbricoides infestation is a common cause of intestinal obstruction in children, and early detection is critical for avoiding severe complications. Prompt and appropriate treatment with antihelminthics and antibiotics is necessary to achieve a good outcome. In rare cases, surgical intervention may be required to treat intestinal obstruction caused by STH infections. In conclusion, the prevalence of STH infections highlights the need for public health interventions, such as improving access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene, and for early detection and treatment to prevent severe complications such as intestinal obstruction.

Surgical management of hilar cholangiocarcinoma: Controversies and recommendations.

Hilar cholangiocarcinomas are highly aggressive malignancies. They are usually at an advanced stage at initial presentation. Surgical resection with negative margins is the standard of management. It provides the only chance of cure. Liver transplantation has increased the number of 'curative' procedures for cases previously considered to be unresectable. Meticulous and thorough preoperative planning is required to prevent fatal post-operative complications. Extended resection procedures, including hepatic trisectionectomy for Bismuth type IV tumors, hepatopancreaticoduodenectomy for tumors with extensive longitudinal spread, and combined vascular resection with reconstruction for tumors involving hepatic vascular structures, are challenging procedures with surgical indications expanded. Liver transplantation after the standardization of a neoadjuvant protocol described by the Mayo Clinic has increased the number of patients who can undergo operation.

Squamous cell carcinoma of the gallbladder masquerading liver abscess with review of literature.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Squamous cell carcinoma of the gall bladder is a rare but aggressive tumor. It has a wide variety of presentations. Presentation as a liver abscess is a rare condition only 2 cases reported in the literature before. CASE REPORT: A 45-year-old male patient presented to the emergency with complaints of fever, right upper quadrant pain, and jaundice. On evaluation, an initial diagnosis of the liver abscess was made. Due to the deteriorating condition of the patient, he was taken up for surgery. Upon exploration, there were multiple deposits over the bilateral lobes of the liver, so a controlled drainage of abscess cavity was done with biopsy from the wall of the gall bladder and liver metastasis was taken which showed squamous cell carcinoma of gall bladder with liver metastasis. The patient was given gemcitabine and oxaliplatin as palliative chemotherapy. He died after 11 months of presentation. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The aggressive and advanced nature of the disease at the presentation poses a formidable challenge in managing such patients but early diagnosis and surgical management can provide long term benefits.

Unforeseen encounter of acquired hemophilia A in a preoperative case of periampullary carcinoma: A case report.

INTRODUCTION: Acquired hemophilia A (AHA) is a rare disorder characterized by development of antibodies against factor VIII, which can present as paraneoplastic syndrome in various malignancies like periampullary cancer, cancer of lung, prostate, gastrointestinal stromal tumour and non malignant cases like pregnancy, autoimmune disease and medication. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a case of elderly man presented with paraneoplastic AHA in periampullary carcinoma in preoperative period which was diagnose by mixing study and inhibitor assay and managed with bypass agents like recombinant factor VII, FEIBA and immunosuppresion to eliminate inhibitor with help of steroid, cyclophosphamide and emicizumab. Patient underwent Whipple's pancreaticoduodenectomy after which coagulation study became normal in immediate postoperative period. Patient was discharged and followed up with chemotherapy. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Periampullary carcinoma presenting as AHA is rare and rarer in pre-operative settings. The usual mode of presentation is bleeding after biopsy and from minor surgical scars. The pathogenesis is yet to be delineated. It is managed by factor VIII administration and immunosuppressive therapy. CONCLUSION: High index suspicion should be there to diagnose AHA as a paraneoplastic manifestation and elective surgery should be delayed till normalization of coagulation parameters.

Delayed pancreatic fistula: An unaccustomed complication following pancreaticoduodenectomy- a rare case report.

INTRODUCTION: and Importance: Post-operative pancreatic fistula is a morbid complication after pancreaticoduodenectomy. Though most of them present in the immediate post-operative period, few case reports have mentioned it even 7 years after index surgery. Here, we report a delayed presentation of pancreatic fistula 6 months after surgery. CASE PRESENTATION: A 57 year old female underwent Whipple's pancreaticoduodenectomy for pancreatic head adenocarcinoma and was discharged with an uneventful post-operative recovery. She presented after 6 months with complaints of abdominal pain and distension which upon evaluation was found to be a pancreatic enzyme rich mutiloculated collection. It was managed with per-cutaneous drain placement. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Pancreatic fistula remained a major cause of morbidity and mortality even after 100 years of its existence. It can be overt fistula which manifest in the immediate post-operative period or occult fistula which manifests long after primary surgery. Various causes of delayed fistula are anastomotic site stricture, previous chemotherapy, infection. The management options available are percutaneous drainage, endoscopic stenting of anastomotic stricture or redoing the anastomosis. CONCLUSION: Pancreatic fistula can have a delayed presentation which can be diagnosed and managed with regular follow up.

Native oesophageal mucocoele: A rare complication of double exclusion of oesophagus.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Native oesophageal mucocoele usually follows bipolar exclusion of oesophagus for various reasons and is very rare in literature. Though mostly asymptomatic, its symptoms can be divided into 3 groups - Compressive, Infective and fistulizing symptoms. The management options described in the literature are percutaneous drainage, chemical ablation, esophagectomy and internal drainage using Roux-en-Y reconstruction. CASE REPORT: A 40 year old female, presented with complaints of dysphagia, weight loss and chest pain for 6 month. She had history of retrosternal gastric pull-up for oesophageal stricture following corrosive injury. On evaluation with CT chest, there was a well-defined fluid attenuated tubular elongated lesion in the mediastinum in the region of oesophagus which was non-opacified with oral contrast and a diagnosis of giant oesophageal mucocoele was made. She underwent internal drainage of mucocoele by roux-en-Y esophagojejunostomy with placement of transanastomotic drain and discharged with an uneventful recovery with the trans-anastomotic drain in situ, which was removed on outpatient basis. Now she is asymptomatic in the subsequent follow up. CLINICAL DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Though rare, mucocoele of oesophagus can lead to life threatening complication like respiratory distress, sepsis. Its diagnosis requires high index of suspicion and CT chest is helpful. Management options depend upon nutritional status of the patient and associated co-morbidities. Esophagectomy is the definitive form of treatment but not always possible and other options can be internal or percutaneous drainage.

Rare Pseudopapillary Neoplasm of the Pancreas: A 10-Year Experience.

INTRODUCTION: The solid pseudopapillary epithelial neoplasm (SPN) is a rare form of pancreatic neoplasm with an incidence of 2-3% of all pancreatic tumours. The recent increase in incidence is attributed to the increasing use of imaging techniques for nonspecific abdominal complaints. We report our institutional experience in the management of this tumour over the last decade. METHOD: We retrospectively analyzed from a prospectively maintained database of patients from January 2011 to December 2020 who were operated upon for SPN. All the patients were followed till date. RESULTS: Of 479 patients operated on for various types of pancreatic tumours during this period, 15 (3.1%) had SPN. The mean age of presentation was 28 years with a female preponderance (12/15, 80%). The most common location was the body and tail of the pancreas (66%), and the mean size was 6.4 cm (2-15 cm). The tumour extent was defined as 'borderline resectable' in 20% of cases. Distal pancreatectomy was done in 11 patients with spleen preservation in 3. R0, R1, and R2 resection were done in 12, 2, and 1 patient(s), respectively. The operative mortality was 6.7%. All the patients are doing well on follow-up. CONCLUSION: SPN is a low-grade malignant tumour with a strong female predilection. Clinical manifestations have no specificity, imaging examination only contributes tumour location, and the final diagnosis rests on pathology. Surgery is the main modality of treatment and carries a good prognosis.

Isolated ectopic jejunal varices in a patient with extrahepatic portal vein obstruction - A case report.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Among the various causes for lower gastrointestinal bleeding, ectopic varices constitute a small chunk. Though rare, these can pose a diagnostic challenge with recurrent bleed leading to multiple admission and blood transfusions. CASE PRESENTATION: A 41-year-old male presented to our department with multiple episodes of melena. On further evaluation with CT angiography, a diagnosis of extrahepatic portal vein obstruction with moderate splenomegaly and ectopic jejunal varix was made. He underwent splenectomy with resection of involved jejunal segment with side to side anastomosis. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: The diagnosis of ectopic varices remains elusive in a large number of cases in view of the varied etiology. Various newer endoscopic and imaging modalities can play a diagnostic as well as therapeutic role but this also further complicates the management as there is a lack of substantial guidelines directing the treatment protocol. As a result, we have to resort to a case by case approach for the optimal management in these cases. CONCLUSION: The main modality of management for bleeding ectopic varices is percutaneous or endoscopic. Surgery is reserved for refractory cases, with decompressive shunts combined with segmental resection of involved intestine being at the forefront of surgical options.

Intestinal obstruction in a tertiary care centre in India: Are the differences with the western experience becoming less?

BACKGROUND: Patients with intestinal obstruction consist of a major proportion of emergency room visits and the complication is associated with a significant morbidity and mortality. It has a diverse aetiology which varies from country to country. In developed countries it is mainly due to adhesions and in developing countries due to obstructed hernias. Although there are numerous studies from the western world on this subject there have been few recent publications from the developing world. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed all the patients admitted with intestinal obstruction to our department from January 1996 to December 2019. Their demographic data, duration of symptoms before presenting to the hospital and interval between admission and surgery were noted along with the cause and level of obstruction. The type of procedure, post-operative complications, mortality or whether re-exploration was done were also noted. Post-operative complications were graded according to the Clavien Dindo classification. RESULTS: A total of 986 patients presented with intestinal obstruction during this period out of which 743 patients underwent surgery. The commonest cause of obstruction was adhesions in 273 (36.7%) - the proportion increased significantly from 23% in 1996-2004 to 51.6% in 2013-2019. This was followed by carcinoma [130(17.5%)], tuberculosis [111(14.9%)], strictures [94(12.7%)] and hernia (5.4%). Colorectal surgery was the most common previous procedure in the adhesions group [85(31.1%)].The overall operative mortality was 41 (5.5%). CONCLUSION: The aetiology of intestinal obstruction in our hospital is now mainly due to adhesions and is thus shifting towards the western pattern. But tuberculosis and obstructed inguinal hernias still constitute of a sizable proportion of our patients.