Short-term clinical outcomes of laparoscopic vs open rectal excision for rectal cancer: A systematic review and metaanalysis

AIM To review evidence on the short-term clinical outcomes of laparoscopic(LRR) vs open rectal resection(ORR) for rectal cancer.METHODS A systematic literature search was performed using Cochrane Central Register, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, Open Grey and Clinical Trials.gov register for randomized clinical trials(RCTs) comparing LRR vs ORR for rectal cancer and reporting short-term clinical outcomes. Articles published in English from January 1, 1995 to June, 30 2016 that met the selection criteria were retrieved and reviewed. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis(PRISMA) statements checklist for reporting a systematic review was followed. Random-effect models were used to estimate mean differences and risk ratios. The robustness and heterogeneity of the results were explored by performing sensitivity analyses. The pooledeffect was considered significant when P < 0.05.RESULTS Overall, 14 RCTs were included. No differences were found in postoperative mortality(P = 0.19) and morbidity(P = 0.75) rates. The mean operative time was 36.67 min longer(95%CI: 27.22-46.11, P < 0.00001), the mean estimated blood loss was 88.80 ml lower(95%CI:-117.25 to-60.34, P < 0.00001), and the mean incision length was 11.17 cm smaller(95%CI:-13.88 to-8.47, P < 0.00001) for LRR than ORR. These results were confirmed by sensitivity analyses that focused on the four major RCTs. The mean length of hospital stay was 1.71 d shorter(95%CI:-2.84 to-0.58, P < 0.003) for LRR than ORR. Similarly, bowel recovery(i.e., day of the first bowel movement) was 0.68 d shorter(95%CI:-1.00 to-0.36, P < 0.00001) for LRR. The sensitivity analysis did not confirm a significant difference between LRR and ORR for these latter two parameters. The overall quality of the evidence was rated as high. CONCLUSION LRR is associated with lesser blood loss, smaller incision length, and longer operative times compared to ORR. No differences are observed for postoperative morbidity and mortality.

Comparative study of laparoscopic vs open gastrectomy in gastric cancer management

AIM:To compare long-term results of gastric cancer patients undergoing laparoscopic and open gastrec-tomy in a single unit.METHODS:From February 2000 to September 2004,all patients with adenocarcinoma of the stomach were assessed to entry in this longitudinal prospective non-randomized trial.Primary endpoint was cancer-related survival and secondary endpoints were overall survival,evaluation of surgical complications and mortality.RESULTS:Fifty-eight patients were enrolled.Forty-seven patients were followed-up(range 11-103,me-dian 38 mo).Four patients were lost at follow up.Twenty-two patients underwent a laparoscopic gastric surgery(LGS)and 25 had a standard open procedure(OGS).No statistical difference was found between the two groups in terms of 5 years cancer-related mortality rate(50% vs 52%,P = 1),and 5 years overall mortal-ity rate(54.5% vs 56%,P = 1).Accordingly,cancer-related and overall survival probability by Kaplan-Meier method showed comparable results(P = 0.81 and P = 0.83,respectively).We found no differences in surgical complications in the 2 groups.There was no conversion to open surgery in this series.CONCLUSION:LGS is as effective as OGS in the man-agement of advanced gastric cancer.However LGS can-not be recommended routinely over OGS for the treat-ment of advanced gastric cancer.

A comparative study of dust control practices in Chinese and Australian longwall coal mines

Mine dust is one of the main hazards in underground longwall mines worldwide.In order to solve the mine dust problem,a significant number of studies have been carried out regarding longwall mine dust control,both in China and Australia.This paper presents a comparative study of dust control practices in Chinese and Australian longwall mines,with particular references to statutory limits,dust monitoring methods and dust management practices,followed by a brief discussion on the research status of longwall mine dust control in both countries.The study shows that water infusion,face ventilation controls,water sprays,and deep and wet cutting in longwall shearer operations are commonly practiced in almost all underground longwall mines and that both Chinese and Australian longwall mine dust control practices have their own advantages and disadvantages.It is concluded that there is a need for further development and innovative design of more effective dust mitigation products or systems despite the development of various dust control technologies.Based on the examinations and discussions,the authors have made some recommendations for further research and development in dust control in longwall mines.It is hoped that this comparative study will provide beneficial guidance for scholars and engineers who are engaging in longwall mine dust control research and practice.

Recurrent achalasia treated with Heller myotomy:A review of the literature

AIM： To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Heller myotomy （HM） for recurrent achlasia, performed after different methods of first-line treatment. METHODS： We searched for studies published in PubMed from 1966 to March 2008 on treatment of recurrent achalasia with HM after failure with different methods of first-line treatment. The efficacy of HM was assessed by a pooled estimate of response rate with individual studies weighted proportionally to sample size. RESULTS： Sixteen studies were eligible and included in the review, The results showed that HM has a better remission rate for recurrent achalasia after failure of HM [weighted mean （SD）] of 86.9% （21,8%） compared with 81.6% （23.8%） for pneumatic dilatation （PD）. One study evaluated the efficacy of HM after failure of PD combined with botulinum toxin injection （83%）, The most common complications were perforation and gastroesophageal reflux, CONCLUSION： HM has the best efficacy in patients with recurrent achiasia who were treated with HM as first-line treatment, Future studies should focus on how to increase the success rate and decrease the complications of HM.

Meta-analysis of laparoscopic vs open liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma

AIM:To conduct a meta-analysis to determine the safety and efficacy of laparoscopic liver resection(LLR) and open liver resection(OLR) for hepatocellular carcinoma(HCC).METHODS:PubMed(Medline),EMBASE and Science Citation Index Expanded and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials in the Cochrane Library were searched systematically to identify relevant comparative studies reporting outcomes for both LLR and OLR for HCC between January 1992 and February 2012.Two authors independently assessed the trials for inclusion and extracted the data.Meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager Version 5.0 software(The Cochrane Collaboration,Oxford,United Kingdom).Pooled odds ratios(OR) or weighted mean differences(WMD) with 95%CI were calculated using either fixed effects(Mantel-Haenszel method) or random effects models(DerSimonian and Laird method).Evaluated endpoints were operative outcomes(operation time,intraoperative blood loss,blood transfusion requirement),postoperative outcomes(liver failure,cirrhotic decompensation/ascites,bile leakage,postoperative bleeding,pulmonary complications,intraabdominal abscess,mortality,hospital stay and oncologic outcomes(positive resection margins and tumor recurrence).RESULTS:Fifteen eligible non-randomized studies were identified,out of which,9 high-quality studies involving 550 patients were included,with 234 patients in the LLR group and 316 patients in the OLR group.LLR was associated with significantly lower intraoperative blood loss,based on six studies with 333 patients [WMD:-129.48 mL;95%CI:-224.76-(-34.21) mL;P = 0.008].Seven studies involving 416 patients were included to assess blood transfusion requirement between the two groups.The LLR group had lower blood transfusion requirement(OR:0.49;95%CI:0.26-0.91;P = 0.02).While analyzing hospital stay,six studies with 333 patients were included.Patients in the LLR group were found to have shorter hospital stay [WMD:-3.19 d;95%CI:-4.09-(-2.28) d;P < 0.00001] than their OLR counterpart.Seven studies including 416 patients were pooled together to estimate the odds of developing postoperative ascites in the patient groups.The LLR group appeared to have a lower incidence of postoperative ascites(OR:0.32;95%CI:0.16-0.61;P = 0.0006) as compared with OLR patients.Similarly,fewer patients had liver failure in the LLR group than in the OLR group(OR:0.15;95%CI:0.02-0.95;P =0.04).However,no significant differences were found between the two approaches with regards to operation time [WMD:4.69 min;95%CI:-22.62-32 min;P = 0.74],bile leakage(OR:0.55;95%CI:0.10-3.12;P = 0.50),postoperative bleeding(OR:0.54;95%CI:0.20-1.45;P = 0.22),pulmonary complications(OR:0.43;95%CI:0.18-1.04;P = 0.06),intra-abdominal abscesses(OR:0.21;95%CI:0.01-4.53;P = 0.32),mortality(OR:0.46;95%CI:0.14-1.51;P = 0.20),presence of positive resection margins(OR:0.59;95%CI:0.21-1.62;P = 0.31) and tumor recurrence(OR:0.95;95%CI:0.62-1.46;P = 0.81).CONCLUSION:LLR appears to be a safe and feasible option for resection of HCC in selected patients based on current evidence.However,further appropriately designed randomized controlled trials should be undertaken to ascertain these findings.

Bile duct injuries associated with laparoscopic and open cholecystectomy: Sixteen-year experience

AIM: To summarize the experience in diagnosis, management and prevention of iatrogenic bile duct injury (IBDI). METHODS: A total of 210 patients with bile duct injury occurred during cholecystectomy admitted to Hunan Provincial People’s Hospital from March 1990 to March 2006 were included in this study for retrospective analysis. RESULTS: There were 59.5% (103/173) of patients with IBDI resulting from the wrong identification of the anatomy of the Calot’s triangle during cholecystectomy. The diagnosis of IBDI was made on the basis of clinical features, diagnostic abdominocentesis and imaging findings. Abdominal B ultrasonography (BUS) was the most popular way for IBDI with a diagnostic rate of 84.6% (126/149). Magnetic resonance cholangiography (MRC) could reveal the site of injury, the length of injured bile duct and variation of bile duct tree with a diagnostic rate 100% (45/45). According to the site of injury, IBDI could be divided into six types. The most common type (type 3) occurred in 76.7% (161/210) of the patients and was treated with partial resection of the common hepatic duct and common bile duct. One hundred and seventy-six patients were followed up. The mean follow-up time was 3.7 (range 0.25-10) years. Good results were achieved in 87.5% (154/176) of the patients. CONCLUSION: The key to prevention of IBDI is to follow the "identifying-cutting-identifying" principle during cholecystectomy. Re-operation time and surgical procedure are decided according to the type of IBDI.

ERCP for the treatment of bile leak after partial hepatectomy and fenestration for symptomatic polycystic liver disease

AIM: To describe endoscopic treatment of bile leaks in these patients and to identify risk factors in these patients which can predict the development of bile leaks. METHODS: Retrospective case-control study examining consecutive patients who underwent partial hepatectomy for polycystic liver disease (PLD) and developed a postoperative bile leak managed endoscopically over a ten year period. Each case was matched with two controls with PLD who did not develop a postoperative bile leak. RESULTS: Ten cases underwent partial hepatectomy with fenestration for symptoms including abdominal distention, pain and nausea. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) showed anatomic abnormalities in 1 case. A biliary sphincterotomy was performed in 4 cases. A plastic biliary stent was placed with the proximal end at the site of the leak in 9 cases; in 1 case two stents were placed. The overall success rate of ERCP to manage the leak was 90%. There were no significant differences in age, gender, comorbidities, duration of symptoms, history of previous surgery or type of surgery performed between cases and controls. CONCLUSION: ERCP with stent placement is safe and effective for management of post-hepatectomy bile leak in patients with PLD.

Surgical management of polycystic liver disease

Adult polycystic liver disease (PCLD) is an autosomal dominant condition commonly associated with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). However in the last decade, it has been recognized that there is a distinct form of autosomal dominant PCLD that arises without concomitant ADPKD. Early knowledge of the pathogenesis was gained from the study of hepatic cysts in patients with ADPKD. Bile duct overgrowth after embryogenesis results in cystic hepatic dilatations that are known as biliary microhamartomas or von Meyenburg complexes. Further dilatation arises from cellular proliferation and fluid secretion into these cysts. There is a variable, broad spectrum of manifestations of PCLD. Although PCLD is most often asymptomatic, massive hepatomegaly can lead to disabling symptoms of abdominal pain, early satiety, persistent nausea, dyspnea, ascites, biliary obstruction, and lower body edema. Complications of PCLD include cyst rupture and cyst infection. Also, there are associated medical problems, especially intracranial aneurysms and valvular heart disease, which clinicians need to be aware of and evaluate in patients with PCLD. In asymptomatic patients, no treatment is indicated for PCLD. In the symptomatic patient, surgical therapy is the mainstay of treatment tailored to the extent of disease for each patient. Management options include cyst aspiration and sclerosis, open or laparoscopic fenestration, liver resection with fenestration, and liver transplantation. The surgical literature discussing treatment of PCLD, including techniques, outcomes, and complication rates, are summarized in this review.

Short-term outcomes of laparoscopic total mesorectal excision compared to open surgery

AIM:To investigate the short-term outcome of laparoscopic total mesorectal excision(TME) in patients with mid and low rectal cancers.METHODS:A consecutive series of 138 patients with middle and low rectal cancer were randomly assigned to either the laparoscopic TME(LTME) group or the open TME(OTME) group between September 2008 and July 2011 at the Department of Colorectal Cancer of Shanghai Cancer Center,Fudan University and pathological data,as well as surgical technique were reviewed retrospectively.Short-term clinical and oncological outcome were compared in these two groups.Patients were followed in the outpatient clinic 2 wk after the surgery and then every 3 mo in the first year if no adjuvant chemoradiation was indicated.Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 13.0 software.RESULTS:Sixty-seven patients were treated with LTME and 71 patients were treated with OTME(sex ratio 1.3:1vs 1.29:1,age 58.4 ± 13.6 years vs 59.6 ± 9.4 years,respectively).The resection was considered curative in all cases.The sphincter-preserving rate was 65.7%(44/67) vs 60.6%(43/71),P = 0.046;mean blood loss was 86.9 ± 37.6 mL vs 119.1 ± 32.7 mL,P = 0.018;postoperative analgesia was 2.1 ± 0.6 d vs 3.9 ± 1.8 d,P = 0.008;duration of urinary drainage was 4.7 ± 1.8 d vs 6.9 ± 3.4 d,P = 0.016,respectively.The conversion rate was 2.99%.The complication rate,circumferential margin involvement,distal margins and lymph node yield were similar for both procedures.No port site recurrence,anastomotic recurrence or mortality was observed during a median follow-up period of 21 mo(range:9-56 mo).CONCLUSION:Laparoscopic TME is safe and feasible,with an oncological adequacy comparable to the open approach.Further studies with more patients and longer follow-up are needed to confirm the present results.

美国的郊外契诃夫——谈谈约翰·契弗的短篇小说

当代美国风俗小说家约翰·契弗的短篇小说以同时代小说家难以企及的细致入微、幽默嬉戏的笔调,用一幅幅生动的画面记录美国中产阶级从闹市区迁徙到市郊住宅区的历史过程,描绘他们变化着的生活方式和精神风貌,不无遗憾地记录了这个阶级和家庭的解体.作者因此被誉为"美国的郊外契柯夫".

Laparoscopic versus open distal pancreatectomy for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma:a single-center experience

Objective：The aim of this study was to compare complications and oncologic outcomes of patients undergoing laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy（LDP）and open distal pancreatectomy（ODP）at a single center.Methods：Distal pancreatectomies performed for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma during a 4-year period were included in this study.A retrospective analysis of a database of this cohort was conducted.Results：Twenty-two patients underwent LDP for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma,in comparison to seventy-six patients with comparable tumor characteristics treated by ODP.No patients with locally advanced lesions were included in this study.Comparing LDP group to ODP group,there were no significant differences in operation time（P=0.06）or blood loss（P=0.24）.Complications（pancreatic fistula,P=0.62;intra-abdominal abscess,P=0.44;postpancreatectomy hemorrhage,P=0.34）were similar.There were no significant differences in the number of lymph nodes harvested（11.2±4.6 in LDP group vs.14.4±5.5 in ODP group,P=0.44）nor the rate of patients with positive lymph nodes（36%in LDP group vs.41%in ODP group,P=0.71）.Incidence of positive margins was similar（9%in LDP group vs.13%in ODP group,P=0.61）.The mean overall survival time was（29.6±3.7）months for the LDP group and（27.6±2.1）months for ODP group.There was no difference in overall survival between the two groups（P=0.34）.Conclusions：LDP is a safe and effective treatment for selected patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.A slow-compression of pancreas tissue with the GIA stapler is effective in preventing postoperative pancreatic fistula.The oncologic outcome is comparable with the conventional open approach.Laparoscopic radical antegrade modular pancreatosplenectomy contributed to oncological clearance.

Comparison of laparoscopic hepatectomy,percutaneous radiofrequency ablation and open hepatectomy in the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma

Objective： Three mainstream techniques-laparoscopic hepatectomy （LH）, percutaneous radiofrequency ablation （pRFA）, and open hepatectomy （OH）--were compared in this study, in terms of their efficacies in the treat- ment of small hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC）. Methods： A comparative study was performed within a total of 94 patients diagnosed with small HCC in our hospital from 2005 to 2010, who underwent LH （28）, RFA （33）, or OH （33）. They had either a single tumor lesion of less than 5 cm or up to three nodules with diameters of less than 3 cm each. Outcomes were carefully evaluated throughout a 3-year follow-up interval and statistically interpreted. Results： The pRFA group had a significantly lower disease-free survival rate compared with the two surgical groups （P=0.001） and significantly shorter overall survival （P=-0.005）, while the LH group and the OH group had no difference in survival results. For patients younger than 60 years old, surgical approaches offered a better long-term overall survival prognosis （P=0.008）. There were no statistically significant differences among the three groups in overall survival for elderly patients （P=0.104）. Conclusions： Among patients with small HCC, LH may provide better curative effects than pRFA without increasing complication rates, pRFA leads to faster recurrence than surgical resections. LH has similar therapeutic effects to OH and causes less trauma. For patients younger than 60 years old, LH may be the best curative treatment. Elderly patients may choose either surgery or pRFA.