The Roux-Y loop in modern digestive tract surgery

Roux-en-Y hepatico-jejunostomy for a left segmental graft: Do not twist the loop, stick it!

Biliary complications remain a major challenge for long-term success after LT, as it is, as a rule, the most common technical - early and late - complication that occurs, and because these complications contribute to a significant number of late graft losses and retransplantations. In the pediatric age group, both biliary atresia, as the patient's condition, and the use of a left liver graft, obtained by a liver division technique, make it necessary for the use of a Roux-en-Y jejunal loop for the biliary reconstruction in the majority of cases. A slight modification of the technique is presented, consisting of a straight positioning along the cut surface (rather than the conventional position that results in a harpoon shape). A favorable outcome in terms of a technical complication and graft survival was observed. This way of doing this is an interesting variation and adds to the surgical armamentarium.

César Roux and his original 1893 paper

The Roux-en-Y type of gastrointestinal anastomosis, originated by the Swiss surgeon César Roux, is a valuable technique used in drainage of the stomach, esophagus, and the pancreatico-biliary tree. It is now frequently used in reconstructing the GI tract after resections for a number of diseases, and known by the general public due to its importance in bariatric surgery. This article presents, along with a brief biographical sketch, an English translation and discussion of Roux's original 1893 French report on gastrointestinal surgery that was published in Revue de Chirurgie.

Roux-en-Y Reconstruction with Stapled Distal Jejunal Pouch after Total Gastrectomy

Roux-en-Y reconstruction after total gastrectomy is a simple and safe procedure; however, it eliminates the gastric reservoir function and markedly changes the postoperative digestive physiology. The patients therefore suffer from insufficient food intake and malabsorption. It has been reported that jejunal pouch reconstruction increases food intake and improves the nutritional status. We established a novel Roux-en-Y reconstruction with stapled distal jejunal pouch after total gastrectomy. A jejunal pouch, 8 cm in size, was attached at the jejunojejunostomy. We performed this novel reconstruction for 20 gastric cancer patients after total gastrectomy with lymph node dissection as a feasible study. One year after operation, the average percentage weight was maintained in more than 90 per cent and 17 (85%) of these patients were in the normal range of the body mass index. This procedure may improve postoperative malnutrition after total gastrectomy according to our feasible study. A multicenter randomized trial of this approach comparing with Roux-en-Y reconstruction without a pouch is ongoing.

Adiposopathy and bariatric surgery: is 'sick fat' a surgical disease?

OBJECTIVE

To review how bariatric surgery in obese patients may effectively treat adiposopathy (pathogenic adipose tissue or 'sick fat'), and to provide clinicians a rationale as to why bariatric surgery is a potential treatment option for overweight patients with type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidaemia.

METHODS

A group of clinicians, researchers, and surgeons, all with a background in treating obesity and the adverse metabolic consequences of excessive body fat, reviewed the medical literature regarding the improvement in metabolic disease with bariatric surgery.

RESULTS

Bariatric surgery improves metabolic disease through multiple, likely interrelated mechanisms including: (i) initial acute fasting and diminished caloric intake inherent with many gastrointestinal surgical procedures; (ii) favourable alterations in gastrointestinal endocrine and immune responses, especially with bariatric surgeries that reroute nutrient gastrointestinal delivery such as gastric bypass procedures; and (iii) a decrease in adipose tissue mass. Regarding adipose tissue mass, during positive caloric balance, impaired adipogenesis (resulting in limitations in adipocyte number or size) and visceral adiposity are anatomic manifestations of pathogenic adipose tissue (adiposopathy). This may cause adverse adipose tissue endocrine and immune responses that lead to metabolic disease. A decrease in adipocyte size and decrease in visceral adiposity, as often occurs with bariatric surgery, may effectively improve adiposopathy, and thus effectively treat metabolic disease. It is the relationship between bariatric surgery and its effects upon pathogenic adipose tissue that is the focus of this discussion.

CONCLUSIONS

In selective obese patients with metabolic disease who are refractory to medical management, adiposopathy is a surgical disease.

The effects of Roux-en-Y limb length on gastric emptying and enterogastric reflux in rats

PURPOSE

To assess the effects of Roux-en-Y jejunal limb length on gastric emptying and enterogastric reflux.

METHODS

Seventy male Wistar rats were submitted to antrectomy with Roux-en-Y reconstruction and then were divided into two groups of 35 animals. Group A, short limb (7.5 cm) and Group B, standard limb (15 cm). Group A and B were subdivided into five subgroups each in order to study enterogastric reflux at 30 and 60 minutes and to evaluate gastric emptying at 5, 10 and 15 minutes. In order to measure gastric emptying and enterogastric reflux, radiotracers 99m Tc-Phytate and 99m Tc-DISIDA were respectively used.

RESULTS

For gastric emptying, the radiotracer concentration was lower in Group A than in Group B after five minutes. The enterogastric reflux was present, but there were no significant differences between enterogastric reflux indexes concerning both A and B Groups.

CONCLUSION

A standard Roux limb, besides being unable to protect the stomach from the enterogastric reflux, may become a functional barrier for gastric emptying.

Zum 150. Geburtstag von César Roux (1857–1918)

César Roux was one of the few universal surgeons at the end of the 19th century who dominated all fields of surgery and influenced current surgery with his innovative spirit. Pioneering spirit and the story of the success of modern surgery are linked with his name. On the occasion of his 150th birthday, we recall the memory of this great surgeon. The personality and the history of Professor César Roux form a part of our medical and surgical heritage.

Hernie interne à travers une brèche mésentérique sur une anse en Y montée selon Roux

We report a case of entire of small bowel necrosis due to internal herniation through a mesenteric rent around the Roux-en-Y anastomosis. For prevention of internal herniation around the Roux-en-Y limb, secure closing of the mesenteric is recommended. Nevertheless, the consequences of a mesenteric closing defect are rarely reported. Necrosis of the entire small has never been described yet.

Roux-en-Y jejunal loop and bile reflux

BACKGROUND

The current opinion is that the reflux of jejunal juice over the whole length of a long Roux-en-Y jejunal loop is very uncommon. We aimed to challenge this concept by monitoring the presence of bile in the organ proximal to a 60-cm loop during a 24-hour period with use of the Bilitec device, an optoelectronic instrument capable of measuring absorbance of a beam of light, the wavelength of which is close to the absorbance peak of bilirubin.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Forty-one patients, 8 of whom had been cholecystectomized, were investigated after total gastrectomy (group I, n = 17), distal gastrectomy (group II, n = 7), or duodenal switch (group III, n = 17). The percentage of recording time absorbance >0. 25 (absorbance scale ranging from 0 to 1) was calculated in reference to data from healthy subjects.

RESULTS

Bile was detected in 17 patients (41%), 5 belonging to group I, 2 to group II, and 10 to group III (P = 0.165). Bile exposure remained within the range of controls in 14 patients whereas it was above this range in 3 patients, 2 of whom had disabling heartburn and severe esophagitis. The percentage of time absorbance >0.25 did not significantly differ from one group to another (P = 0.257) or according to whether patients had been cholecystectomized or not (P = 0.439). However, unlike cholecystectomized patients, patients still having their gallbladder refluxed predominantly during postprandial periods. Lengthening of the loop from 60 cm to 110 cm in the 2 symptomatic patients with a pathologic bile reflux resulted in relief of heartburn and healing of esophagitis in both while bile reflux was abolished in 1 and dramatically reduced in the other.

CONCLUSIONS

Bile refluxes over the whole length of 4 Roux-en-Y loops out of 10. In most patients, bile reflux remains within the range of healthy subjects, producing neither symptoms nor mucosal damage; and it occurs independently of the organ proximal to the loop, but its timing of occurrence is modified by cholecystectomy. Although only for exceptional indications, lengthening of an incompetent loop is effective in patients with excessive bile reflux and severe related symptoms and lesions.