Laparoscopic Observation of Adhesive Rectal Fixation after Gant-Miwa-Thiersch Procedure for Rectal Prolapse: A Case Report.

In our previous report, we have noted an increase of computed tomography (CT) attenuation values in perirectal fat tissue after Gant-Miwa-Thiersch (GMT) procedure for rectal prolapse. Based on these results, we hypothesized that the GMT procedure may have a rectal fixation effect due to inflammatory adhesions extending to the mesorectum. Herein, we report a case of laparoscopic observation of perirectal inflammation after GMT. A 79-year-old woman with a history of seizures, stroke, subarachnoid hemorrhage, and spondylosis underwent the GMT procedure under general anesthesia in the lithotomy position for rectal prolapse measuring 10 cm in length. But rectal prolapse recurred 3 weeks after surgery. Therefore, an additional Thiersch procedure was performed. However, rectal prolapse still recurred, and laparoscopic suture rectopexy was performed 17 weeks after initial surgery. During rectal mobilization, marked edema and rough membranous adhesions were observed in the retrorectal space. The average CT attenuation value obtained 13 weeks after initial surgery was found to be significantly elevated in the mesorectum compared with the subcutaneous fat, especially in the posterior side (P < 0.05). These findings suggest that the extension of inflammation to the rectal mesentery after the GMT procedure may have strengthened adhesions in the retrorectal space.

Effect of the Gant-Miwa-Thiersch Procedure for Rectal Prolapse on the Mesorectum.

Rectal prolapse (RP) most commonly occurs among elderly women and is caused by vulnerable suspensory tissue in the pelvis. In Japan, the Gant-Miwa-Thiersch procedure (GMT) is recommended for elderly people with poor general health. We retrospectively analyzed clinical data from 12 patients who underwent GMT at our hospital from September 2005 to July 2021 and investigated the effect of GMT on the mesorectum using abdominal-pelvic computed tomography (CT) performed for other diseases. The median age of the cohort was 82 years, and 92% of the subjects were women. The median RP length was 5 cm, and the median follow-up period was 60 months. Recurrence was observed in 1 of 12 patients (8.0%). CT conducted before and more than 6 months after GMT revealed no abnormal findings in the mesorectum, whereas CT within 5 months after GMT revealed hyperdense fat in the mesorectum in all three patients (100%; P < 0.05). The RP recurrence rate after the GMT was low. The mechanism of the effect of GMT may involve not only a direct mucosal plicating effect but also adhesional rectosacral fixation due to the presence of inflammation extending to the mesorectum.

[Perforated Marginal Ulcer after Subtotal Stomach Preserving Pancreaticoduodenectomy-Report of Five Cases].

PURPOSE: Perforated marginal ulcer after pancreaticoduodenectomy(PD)is a delayed complication. We evaluated the characteristics of the patients presenting perforated marginal ulcer after PD. METHODS: Five cases of perforated marginal ulcer after PD were reported at our hospital between 2008 and 2018, and the characteristics of these patients were evaluated. RESULTS: All 5 patients(4 females)with median age 73 years underwent subtotal stomach-preserving PD(SSPPD). In spite of the administration of gastric antisecretory medication, perforated marginal ulcer occurred in 3 patients(60%). All patients were treated with direct suture and omentum patch, and no mortality was reported. CONCLUSIONS: The perforating marginal ulcer after SSPPD occurred despite the administration of the gastric antisecretory medication. Treatment with direct suture and omentum patch was effective in perforated marginal ulcer after SSPPD.

[Primary Small Intestinal Cancer-A Clinicopathological Study of Seven Cases].

The clinicopathological features of primarysmall intestinal cancer were assessed retrospectively. Seven patients underwent resection of small bowel cancer in our hospital between June 2011 and January 2019. The mean age of the patients was 62.9 years, and the male to female ratio was 4:3. Five patients were symptomatic, and the correct preoperative diagnosis rate was 28.6%. The average tumor diameter was 5.3 cm, and the median resected intestine length was 25 cm. Histopathological examination revealed that there were 2 patients with poorlydifferentiated tumors and 3 patients with pStage ⅡA, 3 with pStage ⅡB, and 1 with pStage ⅢA disease. Recurrence after surgeryoccurred in 4 patients, including local recurrence in 2 patients and lymph node recurrence in 1 patient. Median survival was 24.5 months. The resected intestinal length was longer and the mesenteric arterydissection was more extensive in survivors than in dead patients. In contrast, the dead patients were older than the survivors and had undifferentiated tumor, ly2/ly3, lymph node metastasis, and recurrence. Moreover, recur- rence occurred in 4 patients who had lymph node metastasis, and/or undifferentiated tumor type, and/or ly2/ly3. An adequate intestinal excision margin along with mesenteric lymph node dissection might be required to improve the survival of patients with primaryintestinal cancer.

Frailty Predicts Severe Postoperative Complication after Elective Hepatic Resection.

BACKGROUND: Frail patients are likely to suffer from postoperative complication, but this assumption has not been well confirmed. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to clarify the importance of frailty in patients undergoing hepatectomy for predicting severe postoperative complications. METHOD: One hundred and forty-three patients aged >65 years undergoing hepatectomy between 2011 and 2016 were enrolled in this study. The relevance of frailty versus sarcopenia for postoperative outcome was assessed. We defined clinical frailty (CF) as a CF scale >4. Sarcopenia was defined by the total muscle area at the level of the third lumbar vertebra measured on computed tomography. RESULTS: There were 16 patients (11%) with CF and 80 patients (56%) with sarcopenia. CF was associated with high age (p < 0.0001), severe postoperative complications (Clavien-Dindo classification ≥3) (p = 0.0059), and postoperative in-hospital stay (p = 0.0013). On the other hand, sarcopenia was not associated with postoperative outcome. Logistic regression analysis revealed that only CF was an independent predictor of severe postoperative complication (risk ratio of 4.2; p = 0.017). The occurrence of organ/space surgical site infection was significantly higher in the frailty group than in the non-frailty group. CONCLUSION: CF, but not sarcopenia, is a robust predictor of severe postoperative complications for patients undergoing hepatectomy.

Conversion surgery for initially unresectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma with synchronous liver metastasis after treatment with FOLFIRINOX.

FOLFIRINOX is a highly effective anticancer treatment, even in advanced pancreatic cancer, which provides a potential cure in patients initially treated with a palliative strategy. A 47-year-old man was found to have an unresectable pancreatic cancer (4 cm in size) surrounding both the superior mesenteric artery and superior mesenteric vein. A simultaneous liver metastasis in Segment 8, with a diameter of 17 mm, was also detected. The pancreatic tumor markers CEA, CA19-9, and DUPAN-2 were significantly elevated to 21.7 ng/mL, 6224 ng/mL, and 1200U/mL, respectively. After 21 courses of FOLFIRINOX, the primary pancreatic tumor diminished in size (partial response) from 42 to 17 mm, and the liver mass almost disappeared. The tumor markers significantly decreased to almost normal levels. Fourteen months after the initial chemotherapy, conversion surgery was performed. Upon surgical resection, the pancreatic tumor was found to be Grade 1b, and a pathologically complete response was observed for the liver metastasis. The patient is still alive 32 months after initial treatment with no recurrence. This is an informative case of a locally advanced pancreatic cancer with a synchronous liver metastasis that had a significant response to FOLFIRINOX, allowing for subsequent curative resection.

Frailty predicts severe postoperative complications after elective colorectal surgery.

BACKGROUND: We aim to clarify if frailty affects severe postoperative complications in elective colorectal surgery. METHODS: Consecutive 269 colorectal cancer patients older than 65 years undergoing curative surgery were enrolled in this study. The relevance of the frailty and sarcopenia to postoperative outcome was assessed. Clinical frailty (CF) was defined as clinical frailty scale (CFS) ≥ 4. Sarcopenia was assessed by measuring skeletal muscle area using computed tomography. RESULTS: Seventy-eight patients (29%) had CF and 159 patients (59%) had sarcopenia. CF was significantly associated with older age (P = 0.0008), postoperative severe complications (P = 0.001), and postoperative in-hospital stay (P < 0.0001), although sarcopenia was not. Logistic regression analysis revealed that low anterior resection and CF were independent predictors of severe postoperative complications (P = 0.038 and P = 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: CF, but not sarcopenia, is a robust predictor of severe postoperative complications in patients with colorectal cancer.

Assessing the economic advantage of laparoscopic vs. open approaches for colorectal cancer by a propensity score matching analysis.

PURPOSES: This study investigated the surgical outcomes and potential economic advantage of open vs. laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer using a propensity score matching analysis. METHODS: We examined the surgical and economic outcomes of patients undergoing laparoscopic (N = 127) and open surgery (N = 253) for colorectal cancer and then compared these outcomes in two groups (N = 103 each) using a propensity score matching analysis. RESULTS: Compared to open surgery, the laparoscopic approach was associated with a significantly lower overall morbidity rate (14 vs. 40%; P < 0.001) and shorter mean (± standard deviation) postoperative hospital stay (12.6 ± 8.3 vs. 16.8 ± 9.9 days, respectively; P = 0.001). Despite generating higher mean surgical costs (Japanese yen) (985,000 ± 215,000 vs. 812,000 ± 222,000 yen; P < 0.001), utilizing a laparoscopic approach significantly reduced the non-surgical costs (773,000 ± 440,000 vs. 1075,000 ± 508,000 yen; P < 0.001). The mean total cost of laparoscopic-assisted surgery (1758,000 ± 576,000 yen) was decreased by approximately 130,000 yen compared with open surgery (1886,000 ± 619,000 yen), although the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.125). CONCLUSIONS: Laparoscopic surgery for colorectal cancer is advantageous in reducing morbidity and facilitating an early discharge and does not increase hospital costs. These findings are consistent with the general consensus supporting the benefits of laparoscopic surgery as a minimally invasive approach.

Gastrointestinal perforation during regorafenib administration in a case with hepatic metastases of colon cancer.

Although common side effects of regorafenib include hand-and-foot syndrome and diarrhoea, the incidence of gastrointestinal perforation is reportedly unknown. We describe our experience with the case of a 65-year-old woman treated with regorafenib as a third-line therapy for progressive caecal cancer with multiple hepatic metastases after 4 and 6 courses of systemic mFOLFOX6 + bevacizumab (BV) and FOLFIRI + BV chemotherapy, respectively. The patient used regorafenib for 32 days but visited our hospital with abdominal pain during the second course. She was diagnosed with acute appendicitis and treated conservatively with antibiotics. The abdominal findings did not improve, and a computed tomography evaluation on day 4 of hospitalization revealed free air lateral to the caecal tumour, liver surface, and epigastric region. The patient underwent same-day emergency surgery based on a diagnosis of gastrointestinal perforation with generalized peritonitis. Upon observing digestive fluid leakage into the peri-ileocaecal area and a 5-mm perforation in the appendix, the patient was diagnosed with peritonitis due to gastrointestinal perforation. Ileocaecal resection with D2 debridement was performed, and a colostomy was opened into the ileum and ascending colon. We conclude that our patient developed gastrointestinal perforation during regorafenib therapy and note that clinicians should be aware of this possible complication in patients with a history of prior treatment with BV.

[A Case of Intestinal Diverticular Perforation in Roux-en-Y Reconstruction after Laparoscopic Distal Gastrectomy].

An 81-year-old woman who had undergone laparoscopic distal gastrectomy complained of abdominal pain 21 days after the operation.Blood tests showed a strong inflammatory reaction.Abdominal CT revealed a perforation in the small intestinal diverticula.Partial jejunectomy including the diverticulum was performed.The diverticular perforation was attributed to the presence of undigested food in the diverticulum.The patient had an uneventful postoperative course, and she was discharged on postoperative day 32.

Pyoderma gangrenosum in an abdominal surgical site: a case report.

Pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) is an uncommon, ulcerative skin disease that is often associated with systemic diseases. Herein, we report a development of PG in a surgical site after cholecystectomy that was difficult to discriminate from surgical site infection. The patient was a 74-year-old man who had previously been diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was planned under diagnosis of cholecystolithiasis, but we converted to open cholecystectomy. The surgical wound was partially erythematous 4 days after surgery. In spite of opening the wound, cleansing it with sterile saline, and administration of antibiotics, inflammation spread with erosion. The clinical manifestations and histopathologic features of biopsy specimen indicated that diagnosis of PG associated with MDS was most likely. Administration of glucocorticoids made a rapid response of skin inflammation. The differential diagnosis of postoperative wound healing complications that were unresponsive to conventional wound local care and antibiotic therapy should include PG, especially in patients with systemic diseases such as MDS.

The modified Glasgow Prognostic Score (mGPS) is a good predictor of indication for palliative bypass surgery in patients with unresectable pancreatic and biliary cancers.

BACKGROUND: Patients with unresectable pancreatic and biliary cancers sometimes need decompression due to obstruction of the gastrointestinal tract and/or biliary tract. The aim of this study was to determine the prognostic factors associated with an indication for palliative bypass surgery in patients with unresectable pancreatic and biliary cancers. METHODS: Between April 2005 and September 2011, 37 patients with unresectable pancreatic and biliary cancers underwent palliative bypass surgery. Prognostic factors were searched for among clinical characteristics, operation-related factors, and tumor-related factors using a prospective database. RESULTS: The median survival time (MST) of these patients was 4.6 months, with a 6-month survival rate of 40.5 %. A multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis revealed that mGPS >2 was the only independent prognostic factor for bypass surgery. Patients with an mGPS of 2 had an MST of 1.7 months, and they had a significantly worse prognosis than mGPS 0-1 patients with an MST of 6.3 months. CONCLUSIONS: The mGPS is useful for predicting survival after surgical decompression due to gastrointestinal obstruction in patients with unresectable pancreatic and biliary cancers. Patients with a poor mGPS may not be indicated for palliative bypass surgery.

Effects of the closing speed of stapler jaws on bovine pancreases.

BACKGROUND: The division of the pancreatic parenchyma using a stapler is important in pancreatic surgery, especially for laparoscopic surgery. However, this procedure has not yet been standardized. METHODS: We analyzed the effects of the closing speed of stapler jaws using bovine pancreases for each method. Furthermore, we assigned 10 min to the slow compression method, 5 min to the medium-fast compression method, and 30 s to the rapid compression (RC) method. The time allotted to holding (3 min) and dividing (30 s) was equal under each testing situation. RESULTS: We found that the RC method showed a high-pressure tolerance compared with the other two groups (rapid, 126 ± 49.0 mmHg; medium-fast, 55.5 ± 25.8 mmHg; slow, 45.0 ± 15.7 mmHg; p < 0.01), although the histological findings of the cut end were similar. The histological findings of the pancreatic capsule and parenchyma after the compression by staple jaws without firing also were similar. CONCLUSIONS: RC may provide an advantage as measured by pressure tolerance. A small series of distal pancreatectomy with a stapler that compares the speed of different stapler jaw closing times is required to prove the feasibility of these results after the confirmation of the advantages of the RC method under various settings.

Large splenic volume may be a useful predictor for partial splenic embolization-induced liver functional improvement in cirrhotic patients.

BACKGROUND: Partial splenic embolization (PSE) for cirrhotic patients has been reported not only to achieve an improvement in thrombocytopenia and portal hypertension, but also to induce PSE-associated fringe benefit such as individual liver functional improvement. The purpose of this study was to clarify the predictive marker of liver functional improvement due from PSE in cirrhotic patients. METHODS: From April 1999 to January 2009, 83 cirrhotic patients with hypersplenism-induced thrombocytopenia (platelet count <10 × 10(4)/µl) underwent PSE. Of them, 71 patients with follow-up for more than one year after PSE were retrospectively investigated. RESULTS: In liver tissues after PSE, proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)-positive hepatocytes were remarkably increased, speculating that PSE induced liver regenerative response. Indeed, serum albumin and cholinesterase levels increased to 104 ± 14% and 130 ± 65% each of the pretreatment level at one year after PSE. In a multiple linear regression analysis, preoperative splenic volume was extracted as the predictive factor for the improvement in cholinesterase level after PSE. Cirrhotic patients with preoperative splenic volume >600 ml obtained significantly higher serum albumin and cholinesterase levels at one year after PSE compared to those with less than 600 ml (P-values were 0.029 in both). CONCLUSION: A large preoperative splenic volume was the useful predictive marker for an effective PSE-induced liver functional improvement.

Definitive diagnosis of a duplicate gallbladder can only be made intraoperatively: report of a case.

Duplicated gallbladders are rare congenital anomalies that are important in clinical practice as they may cause clinical, surgical, and diagnostic problems. Here, we describe the case of a 79-year-old female patient who presented with acute cholangitis. Abdominal ultrasonography, endoscopic ultrasonography, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging revealed an intrahepatic cystic lesion, suggesting communication with the intrahepatic bile duct; no evidence of a polypoid lesion within the cystic lesion was observed. Based on these findings, intrahepatic cholangiectasis, intrahepatic bile duct cystadenoma, and the presence of a duplicated gallbladder were suspected, and surgery was performed. During surgery, a tube inserted into the common bile duct from a cystic duct facilitated intraoperative cholangiography, which indicated the presence of a duplicated gallbladder. Thus, we believe that a duplicated gallbladder should be an additional consideration when typical gallbladder disease symptoms are present under certain circumstances. A multimodal imaging approach can help to establish the diagnosis preoperatively or intraoperatively.

Pancreatic metastasis from mixed adenoneuroendocrine carcinoma of the uterine cervix: a case report.

Metastatic cancers of the pancreas are rare, accounting for approximately 2-4% of all pancreatic malignancies. Renal cell carcinoma is the most common solid tumor that metastasizes to the pancreas. Here, we present a case of uterine cervical carcinoma metastasizing to the pancreas and review the literature regarding this rare event. A 44-year-old woman with a uterine cervical tumor had undergone radical hysterectomy and had been diagnosed pathologically with stage Ib mixed adenoneuroendocrine carcinoma in 2004. She underwent concurrent radiotherapy and chemotherapy postoperatively. Pulmonary metastases subsequently appeared in 2008 and 2011, and she underwent complete resection of the lung tumors by video-assisted thoracic surgery. Although she was followed up without any treatment and with no other recurrences, positron emission tomography revealed an area of abnormal uptake within the pancreatic body in 2012. Enhanced computed tomography demonstrated a 20-mm lesion in the pancreatic body and upstream pancreatic duct dilatation. Endoscopic ultrasonography-guided fine needle aspiration was performed and pathological examination suggested neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC). On the basis of these results and the patient's oncological background, lesions in the pancreatic body were diagnosed as secondary metastasis from the cervical carcinoma that had been treated 8 years earlier. No other distant metastases were visualized, and the patient subsequently underwent middle pancreatectomy. Pathological examination showed NEC consistent with pancreatic metastasis from the uterine cervical carcinoma. The patient has survived 7 months since the middle pancreatectomy without any signs of local recurrence or other metastatic lesions.

Serine protease inhibitor Kazal type 1 and epidermal growth factor receptor are expressed in pancreatic tubular adenocarcinoma, intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm, and pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia.

BACKGROUND: Serine protease inhibitor Kazal type 1 (SPINK1) is expressed in normal human pancreatic acinar cells and in a variety of tumors, and binds to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), mediating cell proliferation through the mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade in pancreatic cancer cell lines. Here, we aimed to assess SPINK1 and EGFR expression in various neoplastic lesions, including tissues demonstrating precancerous changes. METHODS: Surgical specimens of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (n = 23), intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN;n = 21), pancreatic neoplasms other than ductal adenocarcinoma (n = 8), chronic pancreatitis (n = 11), and pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PanIN) lesions within the resected specimens were analyzed immunohistochemically for SPINK1 and EGFR expression. RESULTS: Sixty-five PanIN-1A, 32 PanIN-1B, 17 PanIN-2, and 6 PanIN-3 were identified. Both SPINK1 and EGFR were expressed in almost all PanIN lesions. All tubular ductal adenocarcinoma, IPMN, and mucinous cystadenocarcinoma samples (neoplasms of ductal origin) expressed SPINK1, whereas acinar cell carcinoma, anaplastic carcinoma, adenosquamous carcinoma, insulinoma, and islet cell carcinoma did not. EGFR was expressed in 87 % of tubular adenocarcinoma and 48 % of IPMN lesions. Among IPMN lesions, malignant lesions (IPMC) expressed EGFR more often than benign lesions (IPMA) did. Scattered expression of EGFR was observed in normal pancreatic ducts and within the tubular complex within chronic pancreatitis lesions. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that SPINK1 plays a role as a growth factor, signaling through the EGFR pathway in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma and neoplasms, and that the EGFR is involved in the malignant transformation of IPMN.

Glasgow Prognostic Score as a useful prognostic factor after hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Several previous studies have revealed that the Glasgow Prognostic Score (GPS) is a clinically useful scoring system to predict the prognosis of patients with various kinds of advanced cancers. However, there have been few reports on the relationship between the GPS and prognosis after hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Therefore, we performed an analysis of the relationship between the GPS and prognosis after hepatectomy for HCC. METHODS: Between January 2005 and December 2009, 352 HCC patients underwent hepatectomy at Kumamoto University Hospital. Nineteen clinicopathologic factors were analyzed, using univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Univariate analysis showed that significant risk factors for poor survival included serum albumin level (<3.5 g/dL), tumor size (>35 mm), presence of ascites, portal vein invasion, operation time (>400 min), blood loss (>360 mL), requirement for blood transfusion, and GPS. Multivariate analysis revealed that tumor size [hazard ratio (HR) 3.355; p = 0.003], operation time (HR 2.634; p = 0.006), portal vein invasion (HR 2.419; p = 0.009), and GPS (HR 3.796; p < 0.001) were independent factors for poor prognosis. CONCLUSION: The GPS was demonstrated to be a statistically significant prognostic factor after hepatectomy for HCC.

Choledochal cyst during pregnancy: case report and literature review of treatment.

Choledochal cysts are uncommon conditions, usually diagnosed during childhood, but rarely during pregnancy. Choledochal cysts during pregnancy carry several risks, including development of biliary tract cancer and peritonitis due to rupture of dilated cysts induced by pregnancy itself. We present here a case of choledochal cyst during pregnancy, and discuss appropriate treatments for choledochal cysts first presenting during pregnancy. A 25-year-old primigravida at 15 weeks' gestation was admitted to our hospital with abdominal pain. Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography diagnosed a type 1 choledochal cyst without a mass lesion. A healthy baby arrived without complication at 38 weeks' gestation. The patient underwent cholecystectomy and choledochal cyst excision. The postoperative course was uneventful with discharge on day 8. Pathological examination diagnosed no malignant feature. Surgery may be performed after delivery for choledochal cysts first presenting during pregnancy, and monitoring with magnetic resonance imaging, blood tests, and ultrasonography is necessary during observation.