Early enteral nutrition vs parenteral nutrition following pancreaticoduodenectomy: Experience from a single center

AIM: To analyze and compare postoperative morbidity between patients receiving total parenteral nutrition(TPN) and early enteral nutrition supplemented with parenteral nutrition(EEN + PN).METHODS: Three hundred and forty patients receiving pancreaticoduodenectomy(PD) from 2009 to 2013 at our center were enrolled retrospectively. Patients were divided into two groups depending on postoperative nutrition support scheme: an EEN + PN group(n = 87) and a TPN group(n = 253). Demographic characteristics, comorbidities, preoperative biochemicalparameters, pathological diagnosis, intraoperative information, and postoperative complications of the two groups were analyzed. RESULTS: The two groups did not differ in demographic characteristics, preoperative comorbidities, preoperative biochemical parameters or pathological findings(P > 0.05 for all). However, patients with EEN + PN following PD had a higher incidence of delayed gastric emptying(16.1% vs 6.7%, P = 0.016), pulmonary infection(10.3% vs 3.6%, P = 0.024), and probably intraperitoneal infection(18.4% vs 10.3%, P = 0.059), which might account for their longer nasogastric tube retention time(9 d vs 5 d, P = 0.006), postoperative hospital stay(25 d vs 20 d, P = 0.055) and higher hospitalization expenses(USD10397 vs USD8663.9, P = 0.008), compared to those with TPN.CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that TPN might be safe and sufficient for patient recovery after PD. Postoperative EEN should only be performed scrupulously and selectively.

Impact of cigarette smoking on recurrence of hyperlipidemic acute pancreatitis

AIM To investigate the impact of cigarette smoking on the recurrence rate and recurrence-free survival in patients with hyperlipidemic acute pancreatitis(HLAP).METHODS A total of 863 patients were admitted to our hospital for acute pancreatitis(AP) from January 2013 to March2016, of whom 88 diagnosed with HLAP were enrolled in this retrospective study. Demographic data, medical history, previous episodes of pancreatitis, consumption of alcohol and cigarettes, as well as biochemical and hematological data were carefully recorded for univariate and multivariate analyses. During followup, the information on current smoking status and recurrent AP was gathered. Recurrence-free survival(RFS) was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method, and the differences between groups were compared using the log-rank test.RESULTS No significant differences were observed between the three groups in age or medical history of hyperlipidemia, fatty liver, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, or AP. The current smokers had a remarkably higher recurrence rate and a greater incidence of repeated episodes of AP(50.0% and 77.8%, respectively) than non-smokers(9.8% and 39.0%), and these two percentages were reduced to 9.1% and 36.4% for patients who gave up smoking. The median follow-up time was 13.5 mo and HLAP recurred after hospital discharge in 23(26.1%) patients. Multivariate analysis identified current smoking(HR = 6.3, P = 0.020) as an independent risk factor contributing to HLAP recurrence. Current smokers had significantly worse RFS than non-smokers(23 mo vs 42 mo), but no significant difference was documented between ex-smokers(34 mo) and non-smokers. The RFS was not significantly different between light and heavy smokers.CONCLUSION Smoking is associated with worse RFS and an increased rate of HLAP recurrence. Continued smoking correlates with a compromised survival and smoking cessation should be recommended.

Diagnosis and treatment of acute graft-versus-host disease after liver transplantation:Report of six cases

BACKGROUND Graft-versus-host disease(GVHD)following liver transplantation(LT)is an unpredictable complication with poor outcome.However,consensus regarding the diagnosis and therapeutic regimen for the disease is yet lacking.The present study summarized the clinical experience on the diagnosis and treatment of acute GVHD(aGVHD)following LT and reviewed the pertinent literature.CASE SUMMARY Between January 1^(st),2000 and December 31^(st),2020,a total of 1053 LT were performed in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University.Six recipients developed aGVHD with clinical symptoms of fever,rash,diarrhea,and pancytopenia.The incidence of aGVHD was 0.57%.The median time from LT to the clinical presentation of aGVHD was 22.17 d.The median time from the beginning of the clinical symptom to histopathological diagnosis was 7.5 d.All six cases underwent treatment of immunosuppressant adjustment,corticosteroids,human normal immunoglobulin,and antithymocyte globulin/IL-2 antagonists.Despite intensive treatment strategies,4 patients were deceased due to sepsis,multiple organ failure,and cerebral hemorrhage.The remaining two cases were discharged as treatment successfully.However,one died because of tuberculosis infection on the 6 th month of follow-up,the other one was alive healthy during 30 mo of follow-up.CONCLUSION The rapid diagnosis of aGVHD is mainly based on the time from the first symptom,histopathological features,and the donor T-lymphocyte chimerism.Our cases report highlights massive corticosteroid therapy and age difference between donors and recipients could accelerate to aGVHD.Moreover,gut microbial interventions and donor-targeted serotherapy may provide novel therapeutics.

Application of ML to System Identification for Underwater Vehicle

In this paper, maximum-likelihood (ML) and its relaxation algorithm, which are used to identify the mathematicsmodel of an underwater vehicle(UV), arc discussed. With the trial data of zigzag tests, the hydrodynamic derivatives of theUV were estimated, and the relaxation algorithm is confirmed to have better astringency from the contrast between the twomethods.Then a simulation environment based on these parameters is established to verify the validity and effect of these meth-ods. The result shows the model is credible and the methods are very useful for the research of maneuverability and adaptivecontrol of underwater vehicles.

Hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma with sarcomatous change:Clinicopathological features and outcomes

Combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma(c HCC-CCA)is a rare type of cancer,accounting for 0.4%–14.2%of hepato-carcinoma.Hepatic sarcoma is only less than 2%of primary malignant liver tumors.Thus,sarcomatoid c HCC-CCA is extremely rare.To the best of our knowledge,only twenty-six cases had been reported in the literature[1–19].

Variations of the hilar biliary confluence from postoperative cholangiography in Chinese population

To the Editor: Treatment of the bile ducts at the porta hepatis is a critical step for avoiding post-surgical bile leakage and atrophy of the residual liver and/or the graft during hepatobiliary surgeries, such as hemihepatectomy, surgeries for cholangiocarcinoma or procurement of graft. Precise knowledge of the bile duct anatomy in individual cases has great importance in avoiding these kinds of complications. According to the Couinaud nomenclature.

Compromised immune status of patients with post-liver transplant biliary complications

Immunosuppression(IS)is indispensable for liver trans-plant(LTx)patients to control the unwanted alloimmune responses,which are mainly mediated by T cells.However,antigen-independent homeostasis of T cells is vital for sustaining long-lived T cell-mediated immunity,and excessive IS may increase the risk of opportunistic infections and malignancies.Therefore,IS therapy for LTx patients should be tailored to the immune status of the individual patient.[1]Biliary complications(BC),including biliary strictures with cholangitis,are the most common complications after LTx.However,the immunological characteristics especially T cell-mediated immunity of these patients are unknown yet.