Fifty-five cases of hepatic alveolar echinococcosis combined with lymph node metastasis:A retrospective study

BACKGROUND Lymph node metastasis is a specific type of metastasis in hepatic alveolar echinococcosis(AE).Currently,there is a scarcity of describing the clinical characteristics and lymph node metastasis rules of patients with hepatic AE combined with lymph node metastasis and its mechanism and management are still controversial.Radical hepatectomy combined with regional lymph node dissection is a better treatment.AIM To analyse the clinical features of hepatic AE combined with lymph node metastasis to explore its treatment and efficacy.METHODS A total of 623 patients with hepatic AE admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University from 1 January 2012 to 1 January 2022 were retrospectively analysed.Fifty-five patients with combined lymph node metastasis were analysed for their clinical data,diagnosis and treatment methods,follow-up efficacy,and characteristics of lymph node metastasis.Finally,we comparatively analysed the lymph node metastasis rates at different sites.Categorical variables are expressed as frequencies and percentages,and the analysis of difference was performed using theχ2 test.The Bonferroni method was used for pairwise comparisons when statistical differences existed between multiple categorical variables.RESULTS A lymph node metastasis rate of 8.8%(55/623)was reported in patients with hepatic AE,with a female predilection(69.1%)and a statistically significant sex difference(χ2=8.018,P=0.005).Of the 55 patients with lymph node metastasis,72.7%had a parasite lesion,neighbouring organ invasion,and metastasis stage of P3N1M0 and above,of which 67.3%,78.2%,and 34.5%of hepatic AE lesions invaded the bile ducts,blood vessels,and distant metastases,respectively.Detection rates of lymph node metastasis of 16.4%,21.7%,and 34.2%were reported for a preoperative abdominal ultrasound,magnetic resonance imaging,and computed tomography examinations.All patients were intraoperatively suspected with enlarged lymph nodes and underwent radical hepatectomy combined with regional lymph node dissection.After surgery,a routine pathological examination was conducted on the resected lymph nodes.A total of 106 positive lymph nodes were detected in six groups at various sites,including 51 single-group metastasis cases and four multi-group metastasis cases.When the metastasis rates at different sites were statistically analysed,we observed that the metastasis rate in the para-hepatoduodenal ligament lymph nodes was significantly higher than that of the other sites(χ^(2)=128.089,P=0.000<0.05).No statistical difference was observed in the metastasis rate between the five other groups.Clavien-Dindo grade IIIa complication occurred in 14 cases,which improved after administering symptomatic treatment.Additionally,lymph node dissection-related complications were not observed.Recurrence after 2 years was observed in one patient.CONCLUSION Lymph node metastasis is a rare form of metastasis in hepatic AE,which is more frequent in women.Parahepatoduodenal ligament lymph nodes are commonly observed.Radical hepatectomy combined with regional lymph node dissection is a safe,effective,and feasible treatment for liver AE combined with lymph node metastasis.

Portal vein embolization combined with ex vivo liver resection and autotransplantation: A novel treatment strategy for end-stage and metastatic hepatic alveolar echinococcosis

Alveolar echinococcosis(AE)is a lethal parasitic disease caused by Echinococcus multilocularis larvae,and more than 90%of pri-mary AE lesions occur in the liver.Most of the affected individ-uals remain asymptomatic and the disease is often diagnosed at an advanced stage.The infection may spread to organs adjacent to the liver or distant locations,eventually causing end-stage multi-ple organ AE.Brain metastasis of AE is the most fatal with an inci-dence rate of 0.2%[1].

Complex inferior vena cava reconstruction during ex vivo liver resection and autotransplantation:A case report

BACKGROUND Ex vivo liver resection and autotransplantation(ELRA)is an essential approach for treating patients with end-stage hepatic alveolar echinococcosis(AE),and its surgical indications involve severe invasion of important hepatic vessels,which makes in vivo resection impossible.Revascularization is a major step in the process of ELRA,which is extremely challenging when the invaded vessels have huge defects.CASE SUMMARY Herein,we have reported the case of a 26-year-old patient with hepatic AE in an autologous liver graft who underwent complex inferior vena cava(IVC)reconstruction using disease-free IVC,autologous portal vein fragments,and umbilical vein within the ligamentum teres hepatis.The patient showed good surgical recovery without vascular-related complications during the long-term follow-up.CONCLUSION We reviewed three studies that have reported complex revascularization of the IVC.This case report and systematic review showed that the use of autologous perihepatic vessels prevents donor-area trauma,immune rejection,and other adverse reactions.When the blood vessel is severely invaded and a single vascular material cannot repair and reconstruct the defect,ELRA may provide a safe and feasible surgical approach,which has good prospects for clinical application.

Approaches to reconstruction of inferior vena cava by ex vivo liver resection and autotransplantation in 114 patients with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis

BACKGROUND Hepatic alveolar echinococcosis(AE)is most commonly found in retrohepatic inferior vena cava(RHIVC).Ex vivo liver resection and autotransplantation(ELRA)can better realize the radical resection of end-stage hepatic AE with severely compromised hepatocaval confluences,and reconstruction of the affected vessels.Currently,there is a scarcity of information regarding RHIVC reconstruction in ELRA.AIM To propose reasonable RHICV reconstruction strategies for ex vivo liver resection and autotransplantation.METHODS We retrospectively summarized the clinical data of 114 patients diagnosed with hepatic AE who treated by ELRA in our department.A total of 114 patients were divided into three groups according to the different reconstruction methods of RHIVC:Group A with original RHIVC being repaired and reconstructed(n=64),group B with RHIVC being replaced(n=43),and group C with RHIVC being resected without reconstruction(n=7).The clinical data of patients,including the operation time,anhepatic phase,intraoperative blood loss,complications and postoperative hospital stay,were analyzed and the patients were routinely followed up.The normally distributed continuous variables were expressed as means±SD,whereas the abnormally distributed ones were expressed as median and analyzed by analysis of variance.Survival curve was plotted by the Kaplan-Meier method.RESULTS All patients were routinely followed up for a median duration of 52(range,12-125)mo.The 30 d mortality rate was 7.0%(8/114)and 7 patients died within 90 d.Among all subjects,the inferior vena cava(IVC)-related complication rates were 17.5%(11/63)in group A and 16.3%(7/43)in group B.IVC stenosis was found in 12 patients(10.5%),whereas thrombus was formed in 6 patients(5.3%).Twenty-two patients had grade III or higher complications,with the complication rates being 17.2%,16.3%,and 57.1%in the three groups.The average postoperative hospital stay in the three groups was 32.3±19.8,26.7±18.2,and 51.3±29.4 d(P=0.03),respectively.CONCLUSION ELRA can be considered a safe and feasible option for end-stage hepatic AE patients with RHIVC infiltration.The RHIVC reconstruction methods should be selected appropriately depending on the defect degree of AE lesions in IVC lumen.The RHIVC resection without any reconstruction method should be considered with caution.

A drug-eluting Balloon for the trEatment of coronarY bifurcatiON lesions in the side branch:a prospective multicenter ranDomized (BEYOND)clinical trial in China

Background:Treatment of coronary bifurcation lesions remains challenging;a simple strategy has been preferred as of late,but the disadvantage is ostium stenosis or even occlusion of the side branch(SB).Only a few single-center studies investigating the combination of a drug-eluting stent in the main branch followed by a drug-eluting balloon in the SB have been reported.This prospective,multicenter,randomized study aimed to investigate the safety and efficacy of a paclitaxel-eluting balloon(PEB)compared with regular balloon angioplasty(BA)in the treatment of non-left main coronary artery bifurcation lesions.Methods:Between December 2014 and November 2015,a total of 222 consecutive patients with bifurcation lesions were enrolled in this study at ten Chinese centers.Patients were randomly allocated at a 1:1 ratio to a PEB group(n=113)and a BA group(n=109).The primary efficacy endpoint was angiographic target lesion stenosis at 9 months.Secondary efficacy and safety endpoints included target lesion revascularization,target vessel revascularization,target lesion failure,major adverse cardiac and cerebral events(MACCEs),all-cause death,cardiac death,non-fatal myocardial infarction,and thrombosis in target lesions.The main analyses performed in this clinical trial included case shedding analysis,base-value equilibrium analysis,effectiveness analysis,and safety analysis.SAS version 9.4 was used for the statistical analyses.Results:At the 9-month angiographic follow-up,the difference in the primary efficacy endpoint of target lesion stenosis between the PEB(28.7%±18.7%)and BA groups(40.0%±19.0%)was-11.3%(95%confidence interval:-16.3%to-6.3%,Psuperiority<0.0001)in the intention-to-treat analysis,and similar results were recorded in the per-protocol analysis,demonstrating the superiority of PEB to BA.Late lumen loss was significantly lower in the PEB group than in the BA group(-0.06±0.32 vs.0.18±0.34 mm,P<0.0001).For intention-to-treat,there were no significant differences between PEB and BA in the 9-month percentages of MACCEs(0.9%vs.3.7%,P=0.16)or non-fatal myocardial infarctions(0 vs.0.9%,P=0.49).There were no clinical events of target lesion revascularization,target vessel revascularization,target lesion failure,all-cause death,cardiac death or target lesion thrombosis in either group.Conclusions:In de novo non-left main coronary artery bifurcations treated with provisional T stenting,SB dilation with the PEB group demonstrated better angiographic results than treatment with regular BA at the 9-month follow-up in terms of reduced target lesion stenosis.Trial registration:ClinicalTrials.gov,NCT02325817;https://clinicaltrials.gov.

Left trisectionectomy and supra-hepatic caval reconstruction with vascular prosthesis for chronic Budd-Chiari syndrome caused by hepatic alveolar echinococcosis

To the Editor:Hepatic alveolar echinococcosis(AE)is a lethal infectious disease caused by the larval stage Echinococcus multilocularis(E.multilocularis)and exhibits low prevalence in endemic areas with high morbidity and mortality.AE lesions invading the hepato-caval confluence,including main hepatic veins and retro-hepatic inferior vena cava(IVC),may result in Budd-Chiari Syndrome(BCS),which was a severe complication of AE presented with abdominal pain,ascites,and hepatomegaly.In this study,we reported a case of chronic BCS caused by hepatic AE and summarized the therapeutic method of left trisectionectomy and supra-hepatic IVC replacement with prosthetic grafts.