Laparoscopic splenectomy for severe blunt trauma: initial experience of ten consecutive cases with a fast hemostatic technique.

BACKGROUND: Minor splenic injuries from blunt trauma can be treated conservatively, whereas high-grade injuries commonly associated with multiple trauma require surgical treatment and usually removal of the organ. Although splenectomy is nowadays routinely performed laparoscopically for the treatment of hematological pathologies, in an emergency the operational procedure is performed through conventional laparotomy worldwide, advocating the need for hemostasis. Progress in surgical skill and new developments in equipment allow us to treat also patients affected by severe splenic blunt trauma minimally invasively. METHODS: In this study we analyzed 12 patients who consecutively came under our observation during a 2-year period and, being affected by severe spleen injury from blunt trauma requiring surgery, underwent emergency laparoscopy. All of them had Injury Severity Score (ISS) >or= 20 with Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) >or= 10. Laparoscopic splenectomy was performed in ten of the cases utilizing a quick hemostatic technique. In one case bleeding was controlled without removal of the organ and in another case laparoscopy revealed that the supposed hemoperitoneum and splenic rupture were in fact the rupture of a giant splenic cyst. RESULTS: The median operative time to reach hemostasis was 17 min (13-125 min) and the median overall operative time was 120 min (55-210 min). All operations were performed fully laparoscopically. Neither mortality nor morbidity related to abdominal problems was observed. Median postoperative stay was 4 days (3-11 days). CONCLUSION: Laparoscopic approach to splenic blunt trauma requiring surgery is a safe and effective procedure. The described technique allows laparoscopic splenectomy to be performed in an emergency, with much the same hemostatic efficacy as the open technique, but with much better outcome for the patient.

A new preoperative predictor of outcome in ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms: the time before shock (TBS).

BACKGROUND: In patients with ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (RAAA) and shock, the time lag between the onset of the symptoms due to RAAA and the presence of a full developed shock syndrome was evaluated to assess its prognostic meaning. This time lag was called time before shock (TBS). METHODS: Ninety-four patients operated on between 2002 and 2007 have been retrospectively analyzed regarding TBS and the following parameters: presence of shock, severity of bleeding, age, comorbidities, and gender. According to TBS, on a 10-hour cutoff value, three groups of patients were distinguished: patients with TBS of 10 or less (short TBS), patients with TBS greater than 10 (long TBS), and patients without shock. The relationship of these variables with intraoperative and 30-day mortality was analyzed by both univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: In the univariate analysis, patients with short TBS presented with four-fold mortality compared to patients without shock (p=0.000), whereas the increase in mortality of the patients with long TBS was nonsignificant (p=0.448). The mortality in patients with shock (presence of shock) was 3.7 times higher than in patients without shock (p=0.001). The mortality related to massive bleeding was 3.7 times higher than that associated with moderate bleeding (p=0.001). An increased mortality with borderline significance level was observed in patients older than 75 years (p=0.052). The relationship of mortality to the presence of comorbidities and gender was not significant. In the multivariate analysis, the mortality among the patients with short TBS was clearly highest, after either massive or moderate bleeding. In the logistic model with TBS, the Wald test showed as significant both short TBS (p=0.001) and severity of bleeding (p=0.033) but not age (p=0.103) and long TBS (p=0.0401). The model with TBS presented a better performance than that with shock, showing higher sensitivity, higher values of Youden's J, and a greater proportion of the total variation in mortality. Through the model with TBS, two groups of patients (those 75 years or younger with massive bleeding and those older than 75 years with moderate bleeding), both with short TBS, presented with a high risk of death not predicted by the model with shock. CONCLUSION: TBS seems to complete the information given by the parameter "presence of shock," and its evaluation allows a more effective judgment of the risk of death, at emergency admission of patients with RAAA.

Laparoscopy-assisted abdominal aortic aneurysm repair: early and middle-term results of a consecutive series of 122 cases.

BACKGROUND: Endoaneurysmorrhaphy with intraluminal graft placement, described by Creech, is the gold standard for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair. Endovascular aneurysm repair has gained popularity for its minimal invasiveness and satisfying short-term results, but there are still many concerns about the long-term success of the procedure. Since 1998, laparoscopic surgery has been proposed for AAA treatment. The potential benefits of a minimally invasive procedure reproducing the endoaneurysmorrhaphy results over time have been advocated. In our experience, hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery (HALS) has been routinely used for the open-surgery transperitoneal/retroperitoneal approach and for endovascular aneurysm repair. After 4 years, we are able to define the early and middle-term results of such laparoscopic-assisted treatment. METHODS: From October 2000 to March 2004, 604 consecutive nonurgent AAAs were treated at our institution. Of these, 122 (20.2%) were treated by HALS. Exclusion criteria for HALS were hostile abdomen (previous major abdominal or aortic surgery), bilateral diffuse common iliac and/or hypogastric aneurysms, massive aortoiliac calcifications, and severe cardiac (ejection fraction <35%) and respiratory (P(O2) <60 mm Hg or carbon dioxide >50 mm Hg) insufficiency. Juxtarenal and proximal iliac aneurysms were not a contraindication, nor was obesity. In all patients, we performed a minilaparotomy (7-8 cm) both for laparoscopic hand-assisted dissection and for endoaneurysmorrhaphy. All perioperative data were prospectively recorded. Follow-up consisted of ultrasonography and clinical evaluation after 6 and 12 months and then every year after surgery. RESULTS: The mean laparoscopic and total operative times were respectively 64 +/- 32 minutes and 257 +/- 70 minutes, the mean aortic cross-clamping time was 76 +/- 26 minutes, and the mean autotransfused blood volume was 1136 +/- 711 mL. The overall mortality and morbidity were respectively 0% and 12.2%. Morbidity was surgery related in only two cases (bleeding from an ipogastric artery lesion and a leg graft thrombosis). The mean intensive care unit stay was 14.3 +/- 13 hours. Oral food intake was resumed after 27.4 +/- 15 hours, and patients were discharged after a mean of 4.4 +/- 1.7 days. Operative times were not affected by obesity, suprarenal aortic cross-clamping, or aneurysm size. Both concomitant iliac aneurysms and bifurcated graft implantation (related to longer vascular reconstruction) involved significantly longer operative times. The learning curve of the procedure (comparing the first 30 patients with the last 92 patients) led to significantly shorter endoscopic, cross-clamping, and total operative times (P = .000). The mean follow-up was 28.6 +/- 16 months. Three incisional hernias and one case of bowel occlusion were detected. All these cases (3.4%) required laparoscopic treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The HALS technique is a safe and minimally invasive treatment for AAA; it is useful for limiting the need for conventional open surgery and reducing the length of hospital stay. Despite the lack of randomized studies, HALS seems to be associated with a better postoperative course than standard open surgery. HALS can also be considered as an equivalent of a well-established procedure and as a bridge between open and total laparoscopic surgery.

Endovascular repair of an aorto-left renal vein fistula due to a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm after EVAR.

PURPOSE: To report an unusual late complication of endovascular aneurysm repair: an arteriovenous fistula between the aneurysm sac and a retro-aortic left renal vein following sac expansion due to a type III endoleak. CASE REPORT: A 79-year-old man developed an arteriovenous fistula between the aneurysm sac and a retro-aortic left renal vein 67 months after endovascular aneurysm exclusion (EVAR). Aneurysm rupture was due to disconnection between the right iliac limb and an extender cuff. The problem was repaired percutaneously with another endograft bridging the two prostheses. At 16 months, the aneurysm sac diameter was decreased; there was no evidence of the AV fistula, and the patient was free from any complication related to the EVAR. CONCLUSIONS: This case emphasizes the need of close surveillance even in the late postoperative course of these patients. Moreover, this rare event confirmed that endovascular techniques can play an important role in treating emergent complications.