Frey’s procedure for chronic pancreatitis improves the nutritional status of these patients

Pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of malnutrition in patients with chronic pancreatitis

Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a persistent and progressive pancreatic inflammatory disease. Malnutrition is a common clinical manifestation in CP patients, which is mainly caused by pancreatic exocrine insufficiency but may also be related to pancreatic endocrine insufficiency and changes of living habit. At present, there is still a lack of gold standard for the diagnosis of malnutrition in patients with CP. Clinicians should comprehensively evaluate such patients through anthropometric parameters, test parameters, imaging diagnosis, pancreatic exocrine function detection, etc., detect malnutrition early, and take timely intervention measures, including improving diet and living habits, enteral/parenteral nutrition, pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy, acid suppressant adjuvant therapy, regulating intestinal flora, and administration of Chinese medicine. And endoscopic and surgical treatment should be used when necessary.

Histopathological Changes in Liver of Patients With Chronic Pancreatitis Requiring Surgical Intervention and Their Clinical Significance

OBJECTIVES

The histopathological changes in the liver and their clinical implication in chronic pancreatitis (CP) have not been studied well. We analyzed the incidence, risk factors, and long-term outcomes of these changes in CP.

METHODS

Chronic pancreatitis patients who underwent surgery with intraoperative liver biopsy from 2012 to 2018 formed the study group. Based on liver histopathology, 3 groups were formed: normal liver, group NL; fatty liver, group FL; and inflammation/fibrosis, group FS. The risk factors and long-term outcomes, including mortality, were evaluated.

RESULTS

Among 73 patients, 39 (53.4%) had idiopathic, and 34 (46.6%) had alcoholic CP. The median age was 32 years, 52 (71.2%) were males and comprised NL, n = 40 (55%); FL, n = 22 (30%); and FS, n = 11 (15%). The preoperative risk factors were comparable among NL and FL groups. Overall 14 of 73 patients (19.2%) (NL, 5 of 40; FL, 5 of 22; FS, 4 of 11 [P = 0.82]) had died at median follow-up of 36 months (range, 25-85 months). The main causes of mortality were tuberculosis and severe malnutrition secondary to pancreatic insufficiency.

CONCLUSIONS

The mortality is higher in patients with inflammation/fibrosis or steatosis in liver biopsy, and such patients need monitoring for progression of liver disease and pancreatic insufficiency.

Reporting of longitudinal pancreatojejunostomy with partial pancreatic head resection (the Frey procedure) for chronic pancreatitis: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

Longitudinal pancreatojejunostomy with partial pancreatic head resection (the Frey procedure) is accepted for surgical treatment of painful chronic pancreatitis. However, conduct and reporting are not standardized and thus, making comparisons difficult. This study assesses the reporting standards of this procedure.

DATA SOURCES

A systematic literature review was performed between January 1987 and January 2020. The keyword and Medical Subject Heading "chronic pancreatitis" was used together with the individual operation term "Frey pancreatojejunostomy". Reports were included if they provided original information on conduct and outcome. Thirty-three papers providing information on 1205 patients constituted the study population. Risk of bias in included reports was assessed.

RESULTS

Etiology of chronic pancreatitis (alcohol) was reported in 26 of 28 (93%) studies, duration of symptoms prior to surgery in 19 (58%) studies and pre-operative opiate use in 12 (36%) studies. In terms of morphology, pancreatic duct diameter was reported in 17 (52%) studies and diameter of the pancreatic head in 13 (39%) studies. In terms of technique, three (9%) studies reported weight of excised parenchyma. There were 9 (0.7%) procedure-related deaths. Post-operative follow-up ranged from 6 to 82.5 months. No studies reported post-operative portal hypertension.

CONCLUSIONS

There is substantial heterogeneity between studies in reporting of clinical baseline, morphology of the diseased pancreas, operative detail and outcome after longitudinal pancreatojejunostomy with partial pancreatic head resection. This critically compromises the comparison between centers and between surgeons. Structured reporting is necessary for clinicians to assess choice of procedure and for patients to make informed choices when seeking treatment for painful chronic pancreatitis.

Malnutrition in Chronic Pancreatitis: Causes, Assessment Methods, and Therapeutic Management

PURPOSE

In recent years, more and more emphasis has been placed on early diagnosis and adequate treatment of malnutrition in the course of chronic diseases (CP). One of these diseases is chronic pancreatitis in which malnutrition may develop as a consequence of abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, and alcohol abuse. The aim of this review paper is recognized if we can improve the nutritional status of patients with CP.

METHODS

This paper is based on systematic literature review according to the PubMed.

RESULTS

One of the most important problems is lack of "gold standard" in screening of nutritional status in patients with CP, especially in outpatient clinics. Another problem is preventing malnutrition in these patients and beginning treatment already at significant stages of disease. To prevent malnutrition you must first recognize the causes of malnutrition in CP, adequately assess its severity using one of available questionnaires and then apply the appropriate therapeutic management. At each visit, remember to assess the nutritional status of the patient, including laboratory markers and anthropometric measurements. Patients should be advised to stop smoking and drinking alcohol and to use adequate enzyme supplementation.

CONCLUSION

Patients with CP should be led by a team of gastroenterologist, diabetologist, and psychologist and consulted by a dietitian, specialist of pain treatment, and surgeon.

Geographical variance in reporting of elective surgery for chronic pancreatitis

The selection of optimum surgical procedure from the range of reported operations for chronic pancreatitis (CP) can be difficult. The aim of this study is to explore geographical variation in reporting of elective surgery for CP. A systematic search of the literature was performed using the Scopus database for reports of five selected procedures for CP: duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection, total pancreatectomy with islet autotransplantation (TPIAT), Frey pancreaticojejunostomy, thoracoscopic splanchnotomy and the Izbicki V-shaped resection. The keyword and MESH heading 'chronic pancreatitis' was used. Overall, 144 papers met inclusion criteria and were utilized for data extraction. There were 33 reports of duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection. Twenty-one (64%) were from Germany. There were 60 reports of TPIAT, 53 (88%) from the USA. There are only two reports of TPIAT from outwith the USA and UK. The 34 reports of the Frey pancreaticojejunostomy originate from 12 countries. There were 20 reports of thoracoscopic splanchnotomy originating from nine countries. All three reports of the Izbicki 'V' procedure are from Germany. There is geographical variation in reporting of surgery for CP. There is a need for greater standardization in the selection and reporting of surgery for patients with painful CP.