Hand-assisted laparoscopic low anterior resection: initial experience with a new procedure.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic low anterior resection for rectal cancer has never gained wide acceptance among general surgeons, mainly due to the technical difficulties encountered during pelvic dissection. It has therefore been stated that these patients should undergo open rather than laparoscopic surgery. Hand-assisted laparoscopic surgery (HALS) is a new technique that has the potential to overcome many of the existing limitations of pure laparoscopy. In the treatment of rectal cancer, HALS could reproduce an operative setting similar to that of the open approach. METHODS: To assess the technical feasibility of hand-assisted laparoscopic low anterior resection for rectal cancer and evaluate potential benefits and drawbacks of this new procedure, a pilot study was conducted at a university hospital on 16 consecutive patients during a 12-month period. Only patients with extraperitoneal rectal cancer were included in this series. Patients' clinical data, operative time, conversion rate, complications, and early outcome measures were prospectively examined. RESULTS: There were 9 men and 7 women. The average +/- SD operation time was 238 +/- 38 min. Conversion to open surgery was never required. Ten of 16 patients were off pain medication on the third postoperative day. Eight were able to walk the day after surgery. Three minor postoperative complications were recorded. Mean postoperative stay for patients without complications was 5.6 +/- 1.4 days. CONCLUSION: From a technical standpoint, the reported hand-assisted procedure makes pelvic dissection during laparoscopic low anterior resection almost equivalent to the laparotomic operation. The incision for hand access that is needed with this technique does not seem to compromise the quick recovery of patients undergoing purely laparoscopic procedures.

Thoracoscopic splanchnicectomy for pain relief in unresectable pancreatic cancer.

HYPOTHESIS: Unilateral truncal thoracoscopic splanchnicectomy (TS) provides safe and effective treatment for pain relief in patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer. DESIGN: Before-and-after trial of 24 patients undergoing 25 TS procedures. SETTING: Surgical unit at a university teaching hospital. PATIENTS: A consecutive sample of 24 patients with severe pain due to unresectable (primary or recurrent) pancreatic cancer refractory to drug therapy and with a life expectancy of less than 6 months. INTERVENTION: The key point of the reported operation is intrathoracic carbon dioxide insufflation, which allows a more distal division of the greater splanchnic nerve and a 2-port technique. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Pain and the effect of this symptom on quality of life were assessed before and after TS using a 10-point visual analog pain scale (VAS) and the Nottingham Health Profile questionnaire, respectively. RESULTS: Four TS procedures were technical failures because of pleural adhesions. One patient required a contralateral procedure 12 weeks after TS. Mean (+/- SD) preoperative VAS basal score was 7.4 +/- 1.7. Twenty-four hours after TS, it was reduced to 0.6 +/- 1.0. Significant reduction of VAS scores persisted over the first 3 months after TS (P<.001). Recurrence of pain of low intensity (mean VAS basal score, 4.2) was observed in 8 patients. Significant improvement (P<.001) in each area covered by the Nottingham Health Profile questionnaire was reported at 1 month after TS. CONCLUSION: Thoracoscopic splanchnicectomy offered substantial short-term relief of pain in patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer, and significantly ameliorated the quality of their residual life.

Laparoscopy and laparoscopic ultrasonography for staging pancreatic cancer: critical appraisal.

A pilot study was designed to elucidate the role of staging laparoscopy for determining resectability in patients with pancreatic cancer. The additional value of laparoscopic contact ultrasonography (LCU) was also evaluated with specific regard to its ability to detect hepatic metastases and assess vascular infiltration of the portomesenteric trunk. A consecutive sample of 50 patients referred for operation of a suspected pancreatic cancer were submitted to preoperative contrast-enhanced high-resolution computed tomography (CT) and staging laparoscopy combined with LCU at a university hospital. For those progressing to exploratory laparotomy, the intraoperative findings relating to tumor diffusion and vascular infiltration were compared to CT, laparoscopic, and LCU data. Analytical description of the laparoscopic findings is given. Row data of predicted versus observed vascular infiltration were tabulated for CT and LCU. The sensitivity, specificity, and overall accuracy of each diagnostic test were calculated for comparative analysis. Laparoscopy alone prevented unnecessary laparotomy in 20% of cases. A complete procedure could not be achieved in 28% of patients. Three false-negative staging results occurred. LCU identified small (benign) hepatic nodules not seen by CT in 8% of patients. Sensitivity, specificity, and overall accuracy for assessing vascular infiltration were 82%, 53%, and 69% for CT and 94%, 80%, and 87% for LCU. Laparoscopy was confirmed to be safe and effective for staging pancreatic cancer. Because of its unique capabilities to detect even small peritoneal tumor deposits a quick exploration immediately before laparotomy is advised in all patients. The additional benefit of a more extensive procedure is not supported by our results. Although LCU appears to define the vascular involvement more accurately than conventional CT, the limitation of getting clinically useful ultrasound data in all the patients suggests its adoption in only a selected population.

Safety of adrenal vein ligation during endoscopic adrenalectomy: a technical note.

Endoscopic adrenalectomy has been recommended for the treatment of several benign adrenal diseases. The safety of this procedure largely depends on a careful surgical dissection and appropriate hemostatic technique. An established slipknotting technique was employed to control the main adrenal vein in a consecutive series of 14 patients undergoing endoscopic adrenalectomy. The operative steps to ligate the adrenal pedicle are described. A Medline search also was conducted to identify all reported bleeding episodes associated with this procedure. All attempted ligatures of the main adrenal vein were completed successfully by the described technique, and none of our patients required perioperative blood transfusion. Twenty-eight episodes of bleeding collected from the literature were analyzed. Hemorrhagic accidents related to dislodgement of clips were documented at least in three patients. The cause of bleeding was unspecified in 10 patients. Extracorporeal ligation of the main adrenal vein is feasible, safe, and advisable to prevent the occurrence of hemorrhage during endoscopic adrenalectomy.

Three-dimensional versus two-dimensional video system for the trained endoscopic surgeon and the beginner.

Because of the lack of depth perception in current two-dimensional endoscopic video systems, the performance of fine motor movements is impaired. Endoscopic surgeons are generally able to cope with this limitation, and the performance of complex procedures becomes easy with experience. To assess the value of three-dimensional vision, two groups of surgeons, with and without experience in endoscopic surgery, underwent dexterity tests at a simulator. Data from use of two- and three-dimensional video systems were analysed and are discussed in this paper. The three-dimensional system improved the ability to perform endoscopic procedures, particularly when the highest degree of hand-eye coordination was needed. A common sensation of ocular fatigue, related to the prolonged use of this equipment, may limit its usefulness in advanced endoscopic procedures.

Immunobiology of the xenograft response: xenograft rejection in immunodeficient animals.

These studies provide insight into the immunobiology of xenograft rejection. They suggest that xenograft rejection involves T-cell phenomena, although the ability of the nude rat (functionally known to be T-cell deficient) to reject the vascularized xenograft normally is striking and clearly indicates a need for future studies of this phenomenon. These studies strongly suggest a role for NK and K cell-type activity in xenograft rejection, although they also indicate this immune function is only an ancillary one and that xenograft rejection will eventually occur despite deficiencies in these systems. These studies are most provocative in showing a failure of efficiency of skin graft rejection in the purest model of B-cell deficiency, the XID model. Since these results are obtained with the so-called secondarily vascularized xenograft (skin grafts) it is not possible to exclude the role of B-cell and B-cell-associated phenomena in vascularized organ grafts without further studies.