Association of chronic statin use, myopenia, myosteatosis and major morbidity in surgical patients with upper gastrointestinal cancer

Derangements of body composition affect surgical outcomes. Chronic statin use may induce muscle wasting and impair muscle tissue quality. Aim of this study was to evaluate the association of chronic statin use, skeletal muscle area (SMA), myosteatosis and major postoperative morbidity. Between 2011 and 2021, patients undergoing pancreatoduodenectomy or total gastrectomy for cancer, and using statins since at least 1 year, were retrospective studied. SMA and myosteatosis were measured at CT scan. The cut-off for SMA and myosteatosis were determined using ROC curve and considering severe complications as the binary outcome. The presence of myopenia was defined when SMA was lower that the cut-off. A multivariable logistic regression was applied to assess the association between several factors and severe complications. After a matching procedure (1:1) for key baseline risk factors (ASA; age; Charlson comorbidity index; tumor site; intraoperative blood loss), a final sample of 104 patients, of which 52 treated and 52 not treated with statins, was obtained. The median age was 75 years, with an ASA score ≥ 3 in 63% of the cases. SMA (OR 5.119, 95% CI 1.053-24.865) and myosteatosis (OR 4.234, 95% CI 1.511-11.866) below the cut-off values were significantly associated with major morbidity. Statin use was predictive of major complication only in patients with preoperative myopenia (OR 5.449, 95% CI 1.054-28.158). Myopenia and myosteatosis were independently associated with an increased risk of severe complications. Statin use was associated with a higher risk of having major morbidity only in the subgroup of patients with myopenia.

Evaluation and management of body composition changes in cancer patients

Wasting in cancer patients has long been recognized as a condition that adversely affects cancer patients' quality of life, treatment tolerance, and oncological outcomes. Historically, this condition was mainly evaluated by changes in body weight. However, this approach is not quite accurate because body weight is the overall change of all body compartments. Conditions such as edema and ascites can mask the severity of muscle and adipose tissue depletion. Changes in body composition assessment in cancer patients have historically been underappreciated because of the limited availability of measurement tools. As more evidence highlighting the importance of body composition has emerged, it is imperative to apply a more precise evaluation of nutritional status and a more targeted approach to provide nutritional support for cancer patients. In this review, we will discuss the modalities for evaluating body composition and how to manage body composition changes in cancer patients.

ERAS with or without supplemental artificial nutrition in open pancreatoduodenectomy for cancer. A multicenter, randomized, open labeled trial (RASTA study protocol)

Purpose

The role of supplemental artificial nutrition in patients perioperatively treated according to enhanced recovery programs (ERAS) on surgery-related morbidity is not known. Therefore, there is a need of a clinical trials specifically designed to explore whether given a full nutritional requirement by parenteral feeding after surgery coupled with oral food “at will” compared to oral food “at will” alone, within an established ERAS program, could achieve a reduction of the morbidity burden.

Materials and analysis

RASTA will be a multicenter, randomized, parallel-arm, open labeled, superiority trial. The trial will be conducted in five Italian Institutions with proven experience in pancreatic surgery and already applying an established ERAS program. Adult patients (age ≥ 18 and < 90 years of age) candidate to elective open pancreatoduodenectomy (PD) for any periampullary or pancreatic cancer will be randomized to receive a full ERAS protocol that establishes oral food “at will” plus parenteral nutrition (PN) from postoperative day 1 to day 5 (treatment arm), or to ERAS protocol without PN (control arm). The primary endpoint of the trial is the complication burden within 90 days after the day of surgery. The complication burden will be assessed by the Comprehensive Complication Index, that incorporates all complications and their severity as defined by the Clavien-Dindo classification, and summarizes postoperative morbidity with a numerical scale ranging from 0 to 100. The H0 hypothesis tested is that he administration of a parenteral nutrition added to the ERAS protocol will not affect the CCI as compared to standard of care (ERAS). The H1 hypothesis is that the administration of a parenteral nutrition added to the ERAS protocol will positively affect the CCI as compared to standard of care (ERAS). The trial has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (number: NCT04438447; date: 18/05/2020).

Conclusion

This upcoming trial will permit to establish if early postoperative artificial nutritional support after PD may improve postoperative outcomes compared to oral nutrition alone within an established ERAS program.

Immunonutrition and prehabilitation in pancreatic cancer surgery: A new concept in the era of ERAS® and neoadjuvant treatment

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is an aggressive disease, with a growing incidence, and a poor prognosis. Neoadjuvant treatments in PC are highly recommended in borderline resectable and recently in upfront resectable PC. PC is characterized by exocrine insufficiency and nutritional imbalance, leading to malnutrition/sarcopenia. The concept of malnutrition in PC is multifaceted, as the cancer-related alterations create an interplay with adverse effects of anticancer treatments. All these critical factors have a negative impact on the postoperative and oncological outcomes. A series of actions and programs can be implemented to improve resectable and borderline resectable PC in terms of postoperative complications, oncological outcomes and patients' quality of life. A timely nutritional evaluation and the implementation of appropriate evidence-based nutritional interventions in onco-surgical patients should be considered of importance to improve preoperative physical fitness. Unfortunately, nutritional care and its optimization are often neglected in real-world clinical practice. Currently available studies and ERAS® guidelines mostly support the use of pre- or perioperative medical nutrition, including immunonutrition, in order to decrease the rate of postoperative infections and length of hospital stay. Further data also suggest that medical nutrition should be considered proactively in PC patients, to possibly prevent severe malnutrition and its consequences on disease and treatment outcomes. This narrative review summarizes the most recent data related to the role of prehabilitation, ERAS® program, medical nutrition, and the timing of intervention on clinical outcomes of upfront resectable and borderline PC, and their potential implementation within the timeframe of neoadjuvant treatments.

Diversified Effects of Bile Contamination, Postoperative Infections, and Antimicrobial Resistance Level on the Oncologic Prognosis After Pancreatoduodenectomy for Ductal Adenocarcinoma

BACKGROUND/AIM

Whether the presence of bacteria in the bile or postoperative infections sustained by microorganisms with different levels of drug-resistance are associated with changes in the oncologic prognosis of patients undergoing surgery for pancreatic cancer has not been thoroughly investigated. The aim was to study the association of bile contamination, postoperative infections, and multi-level resistance with long-term outcome.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Prospectively maintained databases were queried for patients who underwent pancreatoduodenectomy (PD). Patients who underwent preoperative biliary stenting prior to PD and an intraoperative bile culture were included. The levels of bacterial resistance of intraoperative bile cultures and of specimens of postoperative infections were stratified into multidrug sensitive (MDS), multidrug-resistant (MDR), and extensive drug-resistant (XDR).

RESULTS

A total of 267 patients met the inclusion criteria. The Kaplan-Meier survival curves for overall survival (OS) of patients having no bacteriobilia or positive cultures with MDS versus MDR/XDR bacteria were not statistically different (log-rank=0.9). OS of patients stratified for no postoperative infection or infections by MDS was significantly better than those having MRD/XDR isolates (log-rank=0.04). A Cox multivariate model showed that having MRD/XDR postoperative infections was and independent variable for worse OS (HR=1.227; 95%CI=1.189-1.1918; p=0.036).

CONCLUSION

Postoperative drug resistant infections are a significant risk factor for poor OS after pancreatoduodenectomy for ductal adenocarcinoma.

Skeletal muscle wasting and long-term prognosis in patients undergoing rectal cancer surgery without neoadjuvant therapy

BACKGROUND

Derangement of body composition has been associated with dismal long-term survival in several gastrointestinal cancers including rectal tumors treated with neoadjuvant therapies. The role of specific preoperative anthropometric indexes on the oncologic outcomes of patients undergoing upfront surgery for rectal cancer has not been investigated. The aim of the study is to evaluate the association of body composition and overall survival in this specific cohort.

METHODS

Lumbar computed tomography images, obtained within the 30 days previous to surgery, between January 2009 and December 2016, were used to calculate population-specific thresholds of muscle mass (sarcopenia), subcutaneous and visceral adiposity, visceral obesity, sarcopenic obesity, and myosteatosis. These body composition variables were related with overall survival (OS), tumor-specific survival (TSS), and disease-free survival (DFS). OS, TSS, and DFS were evaluated by the Kaplan-Meier method. Cox regression analysis was used to identify independent predictors of mortality, tumor-specific mortality, and recurrence, and data were presented as hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).

RESULTS

During the study period, 411 patients underwent rectal resection for cancer, and among these, 129 were without neoadjuvant chemoradiation. The median follow-up was 96.7 months. At the end of the follow-up, 41 patients (31.8%) had died; of these, 26 (20.1%) died for tumor-related reasons, and 36 (27.1%) experienced disease recurrence. One-, three-, and five-year OS was 95.7%, 86.0%, and 76.8% for non-sarcopenic patients versus 82.4%, 58.8%, and 40.0% for sarcopenic ones respectively (p < 0.001). Kaplan-Meier survival curves comparing sarcopenic and non-sarcopenic patients showed a significant difference in terms of OS (log-rank < 0.0001). Through multivariate Cox regression, overall mortality risk was associated only with sarcopenia (HR 1.96; 95%CI 1.03-3.74; p = 0.041). Disease stage IV and III (HR 13.75; 95% CI 2.89-65.6; p < 0.001 and HR 4.72; 95% CI 1.06-21.1; p = 0.043, respectively) and sarcopenia (HR 2.62; 95% CI 1.22-5.6; p = 0.013) were independently associated with TSS. The other body composition indexes investigated showed no significant association with prognosis.

CONCLUSIONS

These results support the inclusion of body composition assessment for prognostic stratification of rectal cancer patients undergoing upfront resection.

Do Preoperative Transfusions Impact Prognosis in Moderate to Severe Anaemic Surgical Patients with Colon Cancer?

(1) Background: Anaemia is a common finding in patients with colon cancer and is commonly corrected by blood transfusion prior to surgery. However, the prognostic role of perioperative transfusions is still debated. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of preoperative anaemia and preoperative blood transfusion in influencing the prognosis in colon cancer. (2) Patients and Methods: Patients undergoing elective surgery for colon cancer at a tertiary referral university hospital between January 2010 and December 2018 were included in a retrospective review of a prospectively collected database. Univariate and regression analyses were performed to identify the prognostic role of preoperative anaemia and preoperative transfusions in this homogeneous cohort of patients. (3) Results: A total of 780 patients were included in the final analysis. The estimated five-year overall survival rate was significantly worse in the anaemic group (83.8% in non-anaemic patients, 60.6% in mild anaemic patients, 61.3% in moderate anaemic patients and 58.4% in severe anaemic patients; log-rank < 0.001 vs. non-anaemic patients). Anaemic status was found to be an independent adverse prognostic factor (hazard ratio (HR): 1.46; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.02–2.07) during multivariate analysis. Among moderate to severe anaemic patients, no significant association was found between preoperative transfusions and the risk of mortality or recurrence. (4) Conclusions: Preoperative anaemia, regardless of its severity, and not preoperative blood transfusion, was independently associated with a worse prognosis after surgery in patients with colonic cancer.

Preoperative standardized phase angle at bioimpedance vector analysis predicts the outbreak of antimicrobial-resistant infections after major abdominal oncologic surgery: A prospective trial

OBJECTIVES

Infectious morbidity is the most common and costly among all surgery-related complications, and infections by multidrug-resistant microorganisms (MDR) are associated with poor outcomes. Derangements of body composition is a recognized risk factor for infections. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential association between specific traits of body composition and the risk of having MDR-related infections.

METHODS

This was a prospective study with patients scheduled for major abdominal surgery for gastrointestinal cancer. Bioimpedance vector analysis (BIVA), a reliable tool for body composition assessment, was performed the day before the operation. Postoperative complications were collected focusing on resistance patterns and site of infection. Patterns of resistance were compared with BIVA parameters.

RESULTS

Data from 182 patients suffering from pancreatic (n = 76, 41.7%), rectal (n = 38, 20.9%), gastric (n = 31, 17%), or hepatic (n = 37, 20.3%) malignancy were collected. Overall complications occurred in 108 patients (59%), and in 45 patients (28%) bacterial infections were proven at culture. Of these, 15 (8%) were multidrug-sensitive (MDS), 38 MDR, and 2 extended drug-resistant (XDR) infections. The standardized phase angle measured (SPA) at BIVA was significantly lower in the MDR/XDR infections (-0.02 ± 1.20) than for no infection/MDS (0.56 ± 1.53; P = 0.029). A multivariate analysis showed that SPA was the only independent variable for MDR/XDR infections with an odds ratio of 3.057 (95% confidence interval, 1.354-6903; P = 0.007). The predictive ability of SPA revealed an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.662, with an optimal threshold of -0.3.

CONCLUSIONS

In surgical cancer patients, preoperative value of SPA lower than -0.3 is associated with the outbreak of MDR bacterial infections.

Is It Just a Matter of Surgical Extension to Achieve the Cure of Hepatocarcinoma? A Meta-Analysis of Propensity-Matched and Randomized Studies for Anatomic Versus Parenchyma-Sparing Liver Resection

BACKGROUND

The benefit of anatomic (AR) versus parenchyma-sparing resection (PSR) in hepatocarcinoma (HCC) is still debated. The aim of the study was to compare AR vs. PSR in terms of overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS).

METHODS

A systematic review was conducted using Medline and Google Scholar. To reduce intra- and inter-study heterogeneity, only propensity-matched studies and randomized clinical trials (RCT) were evaluated and a generic inverse variance meta-analysis was run. A sub-analysis was performed in case of tumor microvascular invasion (MVI).

RESULTS

Eleven propensity-matched and one RCT were evaluated, with a total of 3445 patients (AR = 1776 and PSR = 1669). Tumor burden and liver function were comparable among studies (I² < 50%, p > 0.5). OS was similar between AR and PSR (HR 0.93; 95%CI, 0.75-1.15; p = 0.50, I² = 41%). DFS was improved in AR at 1 year (RR 0.84; 95%CI, 0.72-0.97; p = 0.02; I² = 36%) and 3 years (RR 0.90; 95%CI, 0.83-0.98; p = 0.02; I² = 40%) but not at 5 years (RR 0.94; 95%CI, 0.87-1.01; p = 0.07; I² = 41%). Furthermore, in the presence of MVI, no difference in OS and DFS was observed between AR and PSR.

CONCLUSION

When liver function and tumor burden are comparable, AR and PSR achieved similar overall survival. AR improved local control in the early period after surgery. Furthermore, in the presence of MVI, the extension of surgery was not associated with better OS and DFS.

Performance of Comprehensive Complication Index and Clavien-Dindo Complication Scoring System in Liver Surgery for Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Simple Summary

The comprehensive complication index (CCI) and the Clavien-Dindo Complication (CDC) scoring system are two metrics designed to quantify the burden of postoperative morbidity. We performed a retrospective study retrieving data from a multi-institutional Italian register. The aim was to compare the performance of the two metrics in predicting excessive length of hospital stay (e-LOS) of patients who underwent liver resections for hepatocellular carcinoma. A total of 2669 patients were analyzed. A derivation (n = 1345) and validation sets (n = 1324) were created to test the strength of results. In both cohorts, the analysis showed that CCI was slightly superior in predicting e-LOS in complicated patients. The accuracy of CCI was even better when considering a subgroup of patients who experienced at least two complications. The results of this population-specific analysis suggest that CCI is preferable in weighting postoperative morbidity burden.

Abstract

Background: We aimed to assess the ability of comprehensive complication index (CCI) and Clavien-Dindo complication (CDC) scale to predict excessive length of hospital stay (e-LOS) in patients undergoing liver resection for hepatocellular carcinoma. Methods: Patients were identified from an Italian multi-institutional database and randomly selected to be included in either a derivation or validation set. Multivariate logistic regression models and ROC curve analysis including either CCI or CDC as predictors of e-LOS were fitted to compare predictive performance. E-LOS was defined as a LOS longer than the 75th percentile among patients with at least one complication. Results: A total of 2669 patients were analyzed (1345 for derivation and 1324 for validation). The odds ratio (OR) was 5.590 (95%CI 4.201; 7.438) for CCI and 5.507 (4.152; 7.304) for CDC. The AUC was 0.964 for CCI and 0.893 for CDC in the derivation set and 0.962 vs. 0.890 in the validation set, respectively. In patients with at least two complications, the OR was 2.793 (1.896; 4.115) for CCI and 2.439 (1.666; 3.570) for CDC with an AUC of 0.850 and 0.673, respectively in the derivation cohort. The AUC was 0.806 for CCI and 0.658 for CDC in the validation set. Conclusions: When reporting postoperative morbidity in liver surgery, CCI is a preferable scale.

The Relative Role of Bile Bacterial Isolation on Outcome in Stent-Bearing Patients Undergoing Pancreatoduodenectomy

BACKGROUND

Biliary stenting leads to antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) microorganism retrievement in bile cultures. However, the impact of intraoperative bile colonizations on post-pancreaticoduodenectomy complications remains unclear. Aims of our study were to characterize the bile flora of stented patients in comparison with postoperative cultures and to analyze whether patterns of drug resistance affected postoperative outcomes.

METHODS

We analyzed records from stent-bearing pancreaticoduodenectomy patients at 3 European centers. Intra- and postoperative cultures were compared and classified as multidrug sensitive (MDS), multidrug resistant (MDR), and extensively drug resistant (XDR). Thirty-day complications were graded according to international standards.

RESULTS

Out of 270 patients, intraoperative cultures were positive in 219 (81.1%) cases. In 36.7%, MDS species were isolated; in 35.9%, MDR; and in 8.5%, XDR species. A solid correspondence between the species isolated intra- and postoperatively (p < 0.001) was observed. Intraoperative MDR/XDR isolation was associated with an increased rate of surgical (p = 0.043) and infectious complications (p = 0.030), but not severe complication rate (p = 0.973). Postoperative MDR/XDR isolation was associated with higher risk of major complications (45.6% vs. 15.8%, p < 0.001), postoperative pancreatic fistula (p < 0.001), and post-pancreatectomy hemorrhage (p = 0.002). By multivariate analysis, intraoperative AMR isolation was associated with high likelihood of postoperative AMR infections. However, only in 43/121 cases, intraoperative MDR/XDR microorganisms turned into the occurrence of postoperative infections.

CONCLUSION

Intraoperative AMR isolates do not translate into severe outcomes, despite being significantly associated with surgical and infectious complications.

Treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma beyond the Milan criteria. A weighted comparative study of surgical resection versus chemoembolization

BACKGROUND

Optimal treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) beyond the Milan criteria (MC) is debated. The aim of the study was to assess overall-survival (OS) and disease-free-survival (DFS) for HCC beyond MC when treated by trans-arterial-chemoembolization (TACE) or surgical resection (SR).

METHOD

between 2005 and 2015, all patients with a first diagnosis of HCC beyond MC(1 nodule>5 cm, or 3 nodules>3 cm without macrovascular invasion) were evaluated. Analyses were carried out through Kaplan-Meier, Cox models and the inverse probability weighting (IPW) method to reduce allocation bias. Sub-analyses have been performed for multinodular and single large tumors compared with a MC-IN cohort.

RESULTS

226 consecutive patients were evaluated: 118 in SR group and 108 in TACE group. After IPW, the two pseudo-populations were comparable for tumor burden and liver function. In the SR group, 1-5 years OS rates were 72.3% and 35% respectively and 92.7% and 39.3% for TACE (p = 0.500). The median DFS was 8 months (95%CI:8-9) for TACE, and 11 months (95%CI:9-12) for SR (p < 0.001). TACE was an independent predictor for recurrence (HR 1.5; 95%CI: 1.1-2.1; p = 0.015). Solitary tumors > 5 cm and multinodular disease had comparable OS and DFS as Milan-IN group (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Surgery allowed a better control than TACE in patient bearing HCC beyond MC. This translated into a significant benefit in terms of DFS but not OS.

Preoperative carbohydrates: what is new?

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

The aim of this review is to give an overview of recently published articles covering preoperative carbohydrate loading in surgical patients.

RECENT FINDINGS

Between January 1, 2017, and December 31, 2019, 26 publications addressing the effect of carbohydrate load were retrieved through a systematic search. Seventeen were randomized clinical trials, three prospective observational studies and six retrospective series with case-control comparison. Most of the studies were underpowered, addressed surrogate endpoints, and variability among dose and timing of carbohydrate (CHO) treatment was high. The most recent literature endorses preoperative carbohydrate loading up to 2 h before operations as a safe treatment. The new evidence confirm that this strategy is effective in reducing perioperative insulin resistance and the proportion of hyperglycemia episodes, and improving patient well-being and comfort but without affecting surgery-related morbidity.

SUMMARY

Further properly designed randomized clinical trials, addressing more clinically relevant endpoints such as length of hospitalization and morbidity rate, are warrant.

Quasi-elective left colectomy after endoscopic colon stenting for obstructive cancer yields comparable oncologic outcome to full-elective operation

PURPOSE

Whether deferring surgery after endoscopic self-expandable metal stent (SEMS) placement for neoplastic stricture, and operating patients in a quasi-elective situation, may result in similar oncologic outcomes to elective operations is unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the disease-free survival (DFS) rates of patients who underwent an interval colon resection after SEMS placement or an elective operation with comparable cancer stages.

METHODS

From a prospective dataset, we retrospectively selected patients with the following characteristics: (1) left-sided colon cancer and (2) cancer stage I to III. Exclusion criteria were as follows: (1) palliative surgery and (2) emergency operation. Then we stratified patients into two groups: (A) full-elective left colon resection and (B) quasi-elective left colon resection, defined as surgery performed after SEMS placement for obstructive colon cancer. DFS function was studied by the Kaplan-Meier method.

RESULTS

After 1:2 matching based on cancer stage, 106 patients of the group A were compared with 53 patients of group B. In each group, there were 9.4% of stage I, 39.4% of stage II, and 50.9% of stage III patients. The rate of technical failure in SEMS placement was 3.8%. After a mean follow-up of 54 months, 16 (15.1%) patients in the full-elective groups and 10 (18.9%) in the quasi-elective group experience cancer recurrence (log rank = 0.588). DFS curve did not reach the median value.

CONCLUSIONS

SEMS placement with interval colon resection for obstructive neoplastic strictures seems to provide similar long-term oncologic outcomes to operations performed in an elective setting when a low rate of technical failure is achieved.

The 2019 ESPEN Arvid Wretlind lecture perioperative nutritional and metabolic care: Patient-tailored or organ-specific approach?

BACKGROUND & AIM

The perioperative severe changes in the nutritional and metabolic homeostasis are, by some means, proportional to the extent of tissue injury and magnitude of operative trauma. An adequate qualitative and quantitative replacement of nutritional substrates are of utmost importance to facilitate proper tissue healing and recovery and maintenance of organ function after surgery.

METHODS

The present manuscript has been planned to put the most recent research of the Milano-Bicocca University surgical working group in the context of a more personalized nutritional therapy and metabolic care for surgical patients. Particular prominence has been given to major pancreatic resections because these surgeries are among the most complex and challenging operations for the degree of parenchyma resection and tissue dissection, the consequent overall injury, and the fairly high rate of major complications resulting in a catabolic response.

RESULTS

Anthropometric parameters and particularly sarcopenia, visceral obesity - and their relative proportion -, are strongly associated with poor outcome after pancreatic surgery. Adequate perioperative nutritional therapy is of utmost importance in affecting morbidity. Long-term nutritional and metabolic sequelae, caused by exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, need to be promptly recognized and treated with an adequate enzyme supplementation.

CONCLUSIONS

There is strong evidence sustaining the necessity of proper perioperative metabolic and nutritional care into the management of patients undergoing major pancreatic surgery.

The impact of age and ageing on hepatocarcinoma surgery: Short- and long-term outcomes in a multicentre propensity-matched cohort

BACKGROUND

Management of malignancy in elderly patients is challenging. We aimed to assess the impact of age and ageing on overall survival (OS), recurrence-free survival (RFS), tumour-specific survival (TSS) and potential years of life lost (PYLL) after surgery for hepatocarcinoma (HCC).

METHODS

Consecutive patients treated for HCC between 2005 and 2015 were evaluated. Patients were divided according to age-decade. Afterwards, elderly patients (≥75 years) were compared with patients < 75 years. A 1:1 propensity matching was used to reduce the risk of bias. Survival was estimated by Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression analysis.

RESULTS

Four hundred and thirty-nine patients were stratified: group 1 (age ≤ 55, n = 72), group 2 (age: 56-65, n = 133), group 3 (age: 66-74, n = 141) and group 4 (age ≥ 75, n = 93). Group 1 had the highest median PYLL (27.6, IQR 24.6-32.5) while group 4 the lowest (2.0, IQR 0-9.6; P < 0.001). Comparing elderly vs younger, there were no significant differences in terms of OS (P = 0.054), TSS (P = 0.321) and RFS (P = 0.240). Ageing was the only variable associated with post-operative complications (OR: 2.51; 95% CI: 1.23-5.13; P = 0.025) and liver-related morbidity was an independent predictor of OS. (HR 2.49, 95% CI: 1.34-4.64, P = 0.004).

CONCLUSION

Ageing per se is not an absolute contraindication for liver resection, given the acceptable oncologic long-term prognosis, but the worse short-term outcomes in the elderly should induce an accurate patient selection.

External Validation of Different Scoring Systems for Suspected Choledocholithiasis

AIM OF THE STUDY

The diagnosis of choledocholithiasis is challenging. Previously published scoring systems designed to calculate the risk of choledocholithiasis were evaluated to appraise the diagnostic performance.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Data of patients who were admitted between 2013 and 2015 with the following characteristics were retrieved: bile stone-related symptoms and signs, and indication to laparoscopic cholecystectomy. To validate and appraise the performance of the 6 scoring systems, the acknowledged domains of each metrics were applied to the present cohort. Sensitivity, specificity, positive, negative predictive, Youden index, and receiver operating characteristic curve with the area under the curve (AUC) values of the scores were calculated.

RESULTS

Two-hundred patients were analyzed. The highest sensitivity and specificity were obtained from the Menezes' (96.6%) and Telem's (99.3%) metrics respectively. The Telem's and Menezes' scores had the best positive (75.0%) and negative (96.4%) predictive values respectively. The best accuracy, as computed by the Youden index and AUC, was found for the Soltan's scoring system (0.628 and 0.88, respectively).

CONCLUSION

The available scoring systems are precise only in identifying patients with a negligible risk of common bile duct stone, but overall insufficiently accurate to suggest the routine use in clinical practice.

Determinants, time trends and dynamic consequences of postoperative hyperglycemia in nondiabetic patients undergoing major elective abdominal surgery: A prospective, longitudinal, observational evaluation

BACKGROUND & AIMS

In retrospective studies an indisputable causal relationship between hyperglycemia and postoperative infections cannot be entirely disclaimed. We aimed investigate whether the time trends of blood glucose levels in the perioperative period could be a determinant of surgery-related infections.

METHODS

Adult patients without diabetes who were candidates for elective major abdominal operation were prospectively enrolled in a longitudinal, observational multicenter study. The blood glucose level was measured every 6 h for 3 days. We calculated the association between blood glucose (BG) levels and the risk of occurrence of surgery-related infections using a joint regression modeling for longitudinal and time-to-event outcomes which accounts for the effect of other risk factors.

RESULTS

Between January 2016 and November 2017, we obtained 6078 BG measures distributed on different time-points in 452 patients. There was a nearly 3-fold increased risk of having hyperglycemia, defined as BG ≥ 125 mg/dL, if the BG level at admission was >100 mg/dL (OR = 2.986, P < 0.001).The hazard of infection for each 10 mg/dL increase of BG levels over time was marginal (HR = 1.065, P = 0.045). The calculated risk of having an infection was 9.6% for BG going from 110 mg/dL during surgery to 84 mg/dL at the end of day 3, 10.5% for BG decreasing from 140 to 114, 11.8% for BG decreasing from 180 to 154 and 24.5% for BG increasing from 80 to 145, 24.7% for BG increasing from 110 to 175, and 25.4% for BG increasing from 140 to 205.

CONCLUSIONS

The time trends of BG - as opposed to the absolute concentration -are major determinants of the risk of postoperative infections.

Nutritional support and therapy in pancreatic surgery: A position paper of the International Study Group on Pancreatic Surgery (ISGPS)

BACKGROUND

The optimal nutritional therapy in the field of pancreatic surgery is still debated.

METHODS

An international panel of recognized pancreatic surgeons and pancreatologists decided that the topic of nutritional support was of importance in pancreatic surgery. Thus, they reviewed the best contemporary literature and worked to develop a position paper to provide evidence supporting the integration of appropriate nutritional support into the overall management of patients undergoing pancreatic resection. Strength of recommendation and quality of evidence were based on the approach of the grading of recommendations assessment, development and evaluation Working Group.

RESULTS

The measurement of nutritional status should be part of routine preoperative assessment because malnutrition is a recognized risk factor for surgery-related complications. In addition to patient's weight loss and body mass index, measurement of sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity should be considered in the preoperative evaluation because they are strong predictors of poor short-term and long-term outcomes. The available data do not show any definitive nutritional advantages for one specific type of gastrointestinal reconstruction technique after pancreatoduodenectomy over the others. Postoperative early resumption of oral intake is safe and should be encouraged within enhanced recovery protocols, but in the case of severe postoperative complications or poor tolerance of oral food after the operation, supplementary artificial nutrition should be started at once. At present, there is not enough evidence to show the benefit of avoiding oral intake in clinically stable patients who are complicated by a clinically irrelevant postoperative pancreatic fistula (a so-called biochemical leak), while special caution should be given to feeding patients with clinically relevant postoperative pancreatic fistula orally. When an artificial nutritional support is needed, enteral nutrition is preferred whenever possible over parenteral nutrition. After the operation, regardless of the type of pancreatic resection or technique of reconstruction, patients should be monitored carefully to assess for the presence of endocrine and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. Although fecal elastase-1 is the most readily available clinical test for detection of pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, its sensitivity and specificity are low. Pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy should be initiated routinely after pancreatoduodenectomy and in patients with locally advanced disease and continued for at least 6 months after surgery, because untreated pancreatic exocrine insufficiency may result in severe nutritional derangement.

CONCLUSION

The importance of this position paper is the consensus reached on the topic. Concentrating on nutritional support and therapy is of utmost value in pancreatic surgery for both short- and long-term outcomes.

Long-term oncologic results of anatomic vs. parenchyma-sparing resection for hepatocellular carcinoma. A propensity score-matching analysis

PURPOSE

The extent of liver resection for the optimal treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is debated. The purpose of this study was to compare the impact of anatomic resection (AR) vs. parenchyma-sparing resection (PSR) on disease recurrence and patient survival.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed patients with HCC who underwent liver resection from January 2001 to August 2015. Patients receiving AR or PSR were compared by a propensity score analysis (PSA) (caliper = 0.1). The primary outcomes were disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) rates, and assessed by the Kaplan-Meier method.

RESULTS

455 consecutive patients were evaluated. After PSA 354 patient were studied (177 pairs for each group). The median follow-up time was 28.2 months. The median OS was 47.5 months (95% CI: 30.0-65.9) for AR and 56.5 months (95% CI 33.2-79.6) for PSR (p = 0.169). The median DFS was 29.2 months (95% CI 17.6-40.8) for AR and 24.8 months (95% CI: 15.2-34.2) for PSR (p = 0.337). The multivariate regression model showed that cirrhosis (HR 2.85, 95% CI: 1.53-5.32; p = 0.001), BCLC grade B (HR 4.15, 95% CI: 1.33-12.95; p = 0.014), microvascular invasion (HR 1.55, 95% CI: 1.03-2.31; p = 0.033), presence of satellitosis (HR 1.94, 95% CI: 1.25-3.01; p = 0.003), severe complications (HR 6.09, 95% CI: 2.26-16.40; p > 0.001) were independently associated with poor long-term oncologic outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

The extent of resection did not significantly affect overall and disease-free survival while tumor characteristics and underlying liver function appeared significant determinants.

Resection of the caudate lobe for the treatment of hilar cholangiocarcinoma

INTRODUCTION

Whether the resection of the caudate lobe, in association with major hepatectomy, improves outcomes in hilar cholangiocarcinoma is controversial.

EVIDENCE ACQUISITION

We performed a systematic literature review on all studies published from June 1979 to September 2016. Inclusion criteria for eligibility were the presence of parallel-groups of patients treated with major hepatectomy with either caudate lobe resection (CLR), or not (NCLR), in adult population, reporting data on overall survival (OS). We ran out a random-effect meta-analysis for survival data.

EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS

Six retrospective studies with 969 patients (643 CLR and 326 NCLR) were included. The probability of death was significantly lower in CLR group than in NCLR group (HR 0.65; 95% CI: 0.44-0.97; P=0.035). The median survival time was in favor of CLR (WMD 3.46; 95% CI: 1.02-5.90, P=0.005]. Patients who underwent CLR were more likely to receive a R0 resection than those who did not (OR 8.26; 95% CI: 2.45-27.87; P=0.001). No moderator effects were detected at meta-regression for operative time, postoperative complication rate and pathologic findings.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite the paucity of data and the retrospective nature of the included studies, our results suggest that major hepatectomy plus caudate lobe resection may improve the likelihood of R0 resection and the overall survival in patients with hilar cholangiocarcinoma.

Systematic review and meta-analysis of frailty as a predictor of morbidity and mortality after major abdominal surgery

Background

Frailty is associated with poor prognosis, but the multitude of definitions and scales of assessment makes the impact on outcomes difficult to assess. The aim of this study was to quantify the effect of frailty on postoperative morbidity and mortality, and long‐term mortality after major abdominal surgery, and to evaluate the performance of different frailty metrics.

Methods

An extended literature search was performed to retrieve all original articles investigating whether frailty could affect outcomes after elective major abdominal surgery in adult populations. All possible definitions of frailty were considered. A random‐effects meta‐analysis was carried out for all outcomes of interest. For postoperative morbidity and mortality, overall effect sizes were estimated as odds ratios (OR), whereas the hazard ratio (HR) was calculated for long‐term mortality. The potential effect of the number of domains of the frailty indices was explored through meta‐regression at moderator analysis.

Results

A total of 35 studies with 1 153 684 patients were analysed. Frailty was associated with a significantly increased risk of postoperative major morbidity (OR 2·56, 95 per cent c.i. 2·08 to 3·16), short‐term mortality (OR 5·77, 4·41 to 7·55) and long‐term mortality (HR 2·71, 1·63 to 4·49). All domains were significantly associated with the occurrence of postoperative major morbidity, with ORs ranging from 1·09 (1·00 to 1·18) for co‐morbidity to 2·52 (1·32 to 4·80) for sarcopenia. No moderator effect was observed according to the number of frailty components.

Conclusion

Regardless of the definition and combination of domains, frailty was significantly associated with an increased risk of postoperative morbidity and mortality after major abdominal surgery.