Damage control surgery for severe pancreatic trauma

Pancreatic trauma as a challenge before and during explorative laparotomy is associated with multiple visceral injuries or critical conditions. Its optimal management remains controversial.The current concept of damage control surgery (DCS) has been increasingly accepted. DCS

Establishment of a combat damage control surgery training platform for explosive combined thoraco-abdominal injuries

Purpose:It is challenging to prepare military surgeons with the skills of combat damage control surgery(CDCS).The current study aimed to establish a damage control surgery(DCS)training platform for explosive combined thoraco-abdominal injuries.Methods:The training platform established in this study consisted of 3 main components:(1)A 50 m×50 m square yard was constructed as the explosion site.Safety was assessed through cameras.(2)Sixteen pigs were injured by an explosion of trinitrotoluene attached with steel balls and were randomly divided into the DCS group(accepted DCS)and the control group(have not accepted DCS).The mortality rate was observed.(3)The literature was reviewed to identify the key factors for assessing CDCS,and testing standards for CDCS were then established.Expert questionnaires were employed to evaluate the scientificity and feasibility of the testing standards.Then,a 5-day training course with incorporated tests was used to test the efficacy of the established platform.In total,30 teams attended the first training course.The scores that the trainees received before and after the training were compared.SPSS 11.0 was employed to analyze the results.Results:The high-speed video playback confirmed the safety of the explosion site as no explosion fragments projected beyond the wall.No pig died within 24 h when DCS was performed,while 7 pigs died in the control group.After a literature review,assessment criteria for CDCS were established that had a total score of 100 points and had 4 major parts:leadership and team cooperation,resuscitation,surgical procedure,and final outcome.Expert questionnaire results showed that the scientific score was 8.6±1.25,and the feasibility score was 8.74±1.19.When compared with the basic level,the trainees’score improved significantly after training.

Surgical management of high-grade pancreatic injuries: Insights from a high-volume pancreaticobiliary specialty unit

BACKGROUND The management of high-grade pancreatic trauma is controversial.AIM To review our single-institution experience on the surgical management of blunt and penetrating pancreatic injuries.METHODS A retrospective review of records was performed on all patients undergoing surgical intervention for high-grade pancreatic injuries [American Association for the Surgery of Trauma(AAST) Grade Ⅲor greater] at the Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney between January 2001 and December 2022. Morbidity and mortality outcomes were reviewed, and major diagnostic and operative challenges were identified.RESULTS Over a twenty-year period, 14 patients underwent pancreatic resection for highgrade injuries. Seven patients sustained AAST Grade Ⅲinjuries and 7 were classified as Grades Ⅳ or Ⅴ. Nine underwent distal pancreatectomy and 5 underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy(PD). Overall, there was a predominance of blunt aetiologies(11/14). Concomitant intra-abdominal injuries were observed in 11 patients and traumatic haemorrhage in 6 patients. Three patients developed clinically relevant pancreatic fistulas and there was one in-hospital mortality secondary to multi-organ failure. Among stable presentations, pancreatic ductal injuries were missed in two-thirds of cases(7/12) on initial computed tomography imaging and subsequently diagnosed on repeat imaging or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography. All patients who sustained complex pancreaticoduodenal trauma underwent PD without mortality. The management of pancreatic trauma is evolving. Our experience provides valuable and locally relevant insights into future management strategies.CONCLUSION We advocate that high-grade pancreatic trauma should be managed in high-volume hepatopancreato-biliary specialty surgical units. Pancreatic resections including PD may be indicated and safely performed with appropriate specialist surgical, gastroenterology, and interventional radiology support in tertiary centres.

Treatment of a patient with obstructive jaundice and extrahepatic portal hypertension

BACKGROUND: Recurrence of inflammation in the extrahepatic bile duct can lead to bile duct stenosis' obstructive jaundice and cavernous transformation of the portal vein. The latter can develop into extrahepatic portal hypertension (PHT). It is difficult to establish the correct method for treating these conditions. METHODS: At another hospital, a 51-year-old man developed PHT as a result of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and endoscopic nasobiliary drainage to relieve cholelithiasis and obstructive jaundice. We dealt with the biliary tract obstruction through percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage (PTCD), followed by selective devascularization and a shunt operation 2 weeks after the disappearance of jaundice. Three months after cholecystojejunostomy, there were no obvious changes around the bile duct. RESULT: The patient recovered uneventfully and was discharged 14 days after operation. CONCLUSION: For this patient, surgery in stages was the best choice. The most suitable method to decrease jaundice is PTCD.

Splenic artery trunk embolization reduces the surgical risk of liver transplantation

BACKGROUND： Portal hypertension is one of the most im- portant clinical conditions that cause intraoperative intensive hemorrhage in cirrhotic patients undergoing liver transplan- tation. Pre-transplant portal decompression may reduce the intraoperative bleeding during liver transplantation.

Indications for the surgical management of pancreatic trauma: An update

Pancreatic trauma is rare compared to other abdominal solid organ injuries,accounting for 0.2%-0.3% of all trauma patients. Moreover, this type of injury may frequently be overlooked or not readily appreciated on initial clinical examinations and investigations. The organ injury scale determines the severity of the trauma. Nonetheless, there are conflicting recommendations for the best strategy in severe cases. Overall, conservative management of induced severe traumatic pancreatitis is adequate. Modern imaging modalities such as ultrasound scanning and computed tomography scanning can detect injuries in fewer than 60% of patients. However, magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP) have diagnostic accuracies approaching 90%-100%. Thus, management options include ERCP and stent placement or distal pancreatectomy in cases of complete gland transection and wide drainage only for damage control surgery, which can prevent mortality but increases the risk of morbidity. In the majority of cases, surgical intervention is not required and should be reserved for only severe grade Ⅲ to grade Ⅴ injuries.

Feasibility and safety of “bridging” pancreaticogastrostomy for pancreatic trauma in Landrace pigs

BACKGROUND In recent years,we created and employed a new anastomosis method,“bridging”pancreaticogastrostomy,to treat patients with extremely severe pancreatic injury.This surgery has advantages such as short length of surgery,low secondary trauma,rapid construction of shunts for pancreatic fluid,preventing second surgeries,and achieving good treatment outcomes in clinical practice.However,due to the limited number of clinical cases,there is a lack of strong evidence to support the feasibility and safety of this surgical procedure.Therefore,we carried out animal experiments to examine this procedure,which is reported here.AIM To examine the feasibility and safety of a new rapid method of pancreaticogastrostomy,“bridging”pancreaticogastrostomy.METHODS Ten Landrace pigs were randomized into the experimental and control groups,with five pigs in each group.“Bridging”pancreaticogastrostomy was performed in the experimental group,while routine mucosa-to-mucosa pancreaticogastrostomy was performed in the control group.After surgery,the general condition,amylase levels in drainage fluid on Days 1,3,5,and 7,fasting and 2-h postprandial blood glucose 6 mo after surgery,fasting,2-h postprandial peripheral blood insulin,and portal vein blood insulin 6 mo after surgery were assessed.Resurgery was carried out at 1 and 6 mo after the former one to examine the condition of the abdominal cavity and firmness and tightness of the pancreaticogastric anastomosis and pancreas.RESULTS After surgery,the general condition of the animals was good.One in the control group did not gain weight 6 mo after surgery,whereas significant weight gain was present in the others.There were significant differences on Days 1 and 3 after surgery between the two groups but no differences on Days 5 and 7.There were no differences in fasting and 2-h postprandial blood glucose and fasting and 2-h insulin values of postprandial peripheral blood and portal vein blood 6 mo after surgery between the two groups.One month after surgery,the sinus tract orifice/anastomosis was patent in the two groups.Six months after surgery,the sinus tract orifice/anastomosis was sealed,and pancreases in both groups presented with chronic pancreatitis.CONCLUSION“Bridging”pancreaticogastrostomy is a feasible and safe a means of damage control surgery during the early stage of pancreatic injury.