Is early laparoscopic cholecystectomy safe after the "safe period"?

Comparison of emergency cholecystectomy and delayed cholecystectomy after percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage in patients with acute cholecystitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy and percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGBD) are common treatments for patients with acute cholecystitis. However, the safety and efficacy of emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy (ELC) and delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy (DLC) after PTGBD in patients with acute cholecystitis remain unclear. The PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library databases were searched through October 2019. The quality of the included nonrandomized studies was assessed using the Methodological Index for Nonrandomized Studies (MINORS). The meta-analysis was performed using STATA version 14.2. A random-effects model was used to calculate the outcomes. A total of fifteen studies involving 1780 patients with acute cholecystitis were included in the meta-analysis. DLC after PTGBD was associated with a shorter operative time (SMD − 0.51; 95% CI − 0.89 to − 0.13; P = 0.008), a lower conversion rate (RR 0.43; 95% CI 0.26 to 0.69; P = 0.001), less intraoperative blood loss (SMD − 0.59; 95% CI − 0.96 to − 0.22; P = 0.002) and longer time of total hospital stay compared to ELC (SMD 0.91; 95% CI 0.57–1.24; P < 0.001). There was no difference in the postoperative complications (RR 0.68; 95% CI 0.48–0.97; P = 0.035), biliary leakage (RR 0.65; 95% CI 0.34–1.22; P = 0.175) or mortality (RR 1.04; 95% CI 0.39–2.80; P = 0.933). Compared to ELC, DLC after PTGBD had the advantages of a shorter operative time, a lower conversion rate and less intraoperative blood loss.

Early laparoscopic cholecystectomy by a dedicated emergency surgical unit confers excellent outcomes in acute cholecystitis presenting beyond 72 hours

BACKGROUND

Early laparoscopic cholecystectomy (ELC) within 72 h of symptom onset is preferred for management of acute cholecystitis (AC). Beyond 72 h, acute-on-chronic fibrosis sets in rendering surgery challenging. This study aims to compare the outcomes of ELC for AC within and beyond 72 h of symptom onset by a dedicated acute surgical unit.

METHODS

This is a single-centre retrospective study of 217 patients with AC who underwent ELC by an acute surgical unit from January 2017 to August 2018. Outcomes collected include post-operative morbidity, length of hospitalization and operation duration. A subgroup analysis for the same outcomes was performed for elderly patients.

RESULTS

Of the 217 patients, 88 were operated within 72 h of symptom onset while 129 were operated beyond 72 h. Twenty-six patients received ELC after 7 days. There was no occurrence of bile duct injury. There was no statistical difference in conversion rates, wound infections and post-operative collections. Patients receiving ELC beyond 72 h had longer duration of operation (125.4 versus 116 min, P = 0.035) and length of hospitalization (4.59 versus 3.09 days, P = 0.001) without increase in morbidity. Patients older than 75 years had a higher incidence of post-operative collection (P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Patients with AC undergoing ELC by a dedicated acute surgical unit can have good outcomes even beyond 72 h of symptom onset. Meticulous haemostasis should be performed for the elderly subgroup of patients.

[Management of Acute Cholecystitis]

Acute cholecystitis is a common serious complication of gallstones. The reported mortality of acute cholecystitis is approximately 3%, but the rate increases with age or comorbidity of the patient. If appropriate treatment is delayed, complications can develop as a consequence with a grave prognosis. The current standard of care in acute cholecystitis is an early laparoscopic cholecystectomy with the appropriate administration of fluid, electrolyte, and antibiotics. On the other hand, the severity of the disease and patient's operational risk must be considered. In those with high operational risks, gall bladder drainage can be performed as an alternative. Currently percutaneous and endoscopic drainage are available and show clinical success in most cases. After recovering from acute cholecystitis, the patients who have undergone drainage should be considered for cholecystectomy as a definitive treatment. However, in elderly patients or patients with significant comorbidity, operational risks may still be high, making cholecystectomy inappropriate. In these patients, gallstone removal using the percutaneous tract or endoscopy may be considered.

Timing of Cholecystectomy after Percutaneous Cholecystostomy for Acute Cholecystitis

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the standard treatment for acute cholecystitis. Percutaneous cholecystostomy is an alternative treatment to resolve acute inflammation in patients with severe comorbidities. The purpose of this study is to determine the optimal timing of laparoscopic cholecystectomy after percutaneous cholecystostomy for the patients with acute cholecystitis.

METHODS

This retrospective study was conducted in patients who underwent cholecystectomy after percutaneous cholecystostomy from January 2010 through November 2014. Seventy-four patients were included in this study. The patients were divided into two groups by the operation timing. Group I patients underwent cholecystectomy within 10 days after percutaneous cholecystostomy (n=30) and group II patients underwent cholecystectomy at more than 10 days after percutaneous cholecystostomy (n=44).

RESULTS

There was no significant difference between groups in conversion rate to open surgery, operation time, perioperative complications rate, and days of hospital stay after operation. However, complications related to cholecystostomy such as catheter dislodgement occurred significantly more often in group II than group I (group I:group II=0%:18.2%; p=0.013).

CONCLUSIONS

Timing of laparoscopic cholecystectomy after percutaneous cholecystostomy did not influence postoperative outcomes. However, late surgery caused more complications related to cholecystostomy than early surgery. Therefore, early laparoscopic cholecystectomy should be considered over late surgery after percutaneous cholecystostomy insertion.

Early laparoscopic cholecystectomy is superior to delayed acute cholecystitis: a meta-analysis of case-control studies

BACKGROUND

Since the advent of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) there has been continued debate regarding the management of acute cholecystitis with either early or delayed LC. Nearly all studies have demonstrated that early LC has a significantly shorter total length of hospital stay compared with delayed LC. Although previous randomized controlled trials and meta-analysis have shown clinical outcomes to favour early surgery, clinical practice continues to vary significantly worldwide. In addition, there is much confusion in the optimal timing for early LC with definitions of early varying from 72 h to 7 days. There have been numerous case-control studies investigating the timing of LC in acute cholecystitis. The aim of this paper is to pool the results from all case-control studies to investigate outcomes including mortality rates, complication rates, length of hospital stay and conversion rates to open procedures.

METHODS

A search of electronic databases was performed for case-control studies published between 1985-February 2015.

RESULTS

Results from 77 case-control studies showed statistically significant reductions in mortality, complications, bile duct leaks, bile duct injuries, wound infections, conversion rates, length of hospital stay and blood loss associated with early LC. Although LC within the 72-h window is optimal, patients operated after this window still benefit from early surgery compared to delayed surgery. The duration of symptoms in acute cholecystitis should not influence the surgeons' willingness to operate acutely.

CONCLUSIONS

Early LC is clearly superior to delayed LC in acute cholecystitis. The most recent evidence-based practice strongly suggests that early LC should be standard of care in the management of acute cholecystitis.

Surgical management of acute cholecystitis

BACKGROUND

Acute cholecystitis occurs in approximately 1% of patients with known gallstones. It presents as a surgical emergency and usually requires hospitalisation for treatment. It is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, particularly in the elderly. Cholecystectomy is advocated for acute cholecystitis; however, the timing of cholecystectomy and the value of the additional treatments have been a matter of debate. This review examines the available evidence regarding the optimal surgical management of patients with acute cholecystitis.

METHODS

A literature search was performed on the MEDLINE, EMBASE and WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, databases for English language publications. The MeSH headings 'cholecystitis', 'acute', 'gallbladder', 'inflammation', 'surgery', 'cholecystectomy', 'laparoscopic', 'robotic', 'telerobotic' and 'computer-assisted' were used.

RESULTS

Data from eight randomised controlled trails and three population-based analyses show that early cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis performed on the index admission is safe and not associated with increased conversion rates or morbidity in comparison to conservative treatment followed by elective cholecystectomy. Delaying cholecystectomy increases readmissions for gallstone-related events, complications, hospital stay and mortality in the elderly. Early cholecystectomy is also more cost-effective. Randomised trials addressing antibiotic use in acute cholecystitis suggest that antibiotics should be stopped on the day of cholecystectomy. Insufficient trials have been performed to address the optimal analgesia regime post cholecystectomy. Similarly, a lack of trials on intraoperative cholangiography and management of common bile duct stones in patients with acute cholecystitis means that treatment of concomitant bile duct stones should be based on institutional expertise and resource availability. As regards acute cholecystitis in elderly and high-risk patients, case series and retrospective studies would suggest that cholecystectomy is more effective and of lower mortality than percutaneous cholecystostomy. There is not enough evidence to support the routine use of robotic surgery, single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy or natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) in the treatment of acute cholecystitis.

CONCLUSIONS

Trial evidence would favour a policy of early laparoscopic cholecystectomy following admission with acute cholecystitis. The optimal approach to support early cholecystectomy is suggested but requires evidence from further randomised trials.

Emergency cholecystectomy vs percutaneous cholecystostomy plus delayed cholecystectomy for patients with acute cholecystitis

BACKGROUND

In low-risk patients with acute cholecystitis who did not respond to nonoperative treatment, we prospectively compared treatment with emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy or percutaneous transhepatic cholecystostomy followed by delayed cholecystectomy.

METHODS

In 91 patients (American Society of Anesthesiologists class I or II) who had symptoms of acute cholecystitis ≥72 hours at hospital admission and who did not respond to nonoperative treatment (48 hours), 48 patients were treated with emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy and 43 patients were treated with delayed cholecystectomy at ≥4 weeks after insertion of a percutaneous transhepatic cholecystostomy catheter. After initial treatment, the patients were followed up for 23 months on average (range 7-29).

RESULT

Compared with the patients who had emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the patients who were treated with percutaneous transhepatic cholecystostomy and delayed cholecystectomy had a lower frequency of conversion to open surgery [19 (40%) vs 8 (19%); P=0.029], a frequency of intraoperative bleeding ≥100 mL [16 (33%) vs 4 (9%); P=0.006], a mean postoperative hospital stay (5.3+/-3.3 vs 3.0+/-2.4 days; P=0.001), and a frequency of complications [17 (35%) vs 4 (9%); P=0.003].

CONCLUSION

In patients with acute cholecystitis who presented to the hospital ≥72 hours after symptom onset and did not respond to nonoperative treatment for 48 hours, percutaneous transhepatic cholecystostomy with delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy produced better outcomes and fewer complications than emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Comparison of laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute cholecystitis within and beyond 72 h of symptom onset during emergency admissions

BACKGROUND

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) performed for acute cholecystitis (AC) is usually advised within 72 h of symptom onset. It can be difficult to accommodate all these patients within 72 h. LC beyond this early phase potentially increases the chances of LC-related complications. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of LC both within and beyond 72 h of presentation during the emergency admission.

METHODS

A retrospective clinical study was performed from February 2004 to December 2009. A total of 133 patients underwent LC for AC during the emergency admission according to the protocol: 34 patients underwent early LC (ELC) (i.e., operation within 72 h of symptom onset) and 99 underwent late LC (LLC) (i.e., operation beyond 72 h of symptom onset). Pathologic type of cholecystitis, duration of the procedure, conversion rate, complications, length of hospital stay (LOS), and total charges were compared between the two groups.

RESULTS

Patients undergoing ELC experienced a significantly shorter operating time (44.1 ± 5.32 vs. 66.4 ± 3.05 min, p < 0.01). Most of the AC (95/133, 71 %) was pathologically simple cholecystitis. There was no significant difference regarding wound infection rates [1/34 (2.94 %) vs. 2/99 (2.02 %), p > 0.05] or postoperative hospital stay (6.50 ± 1.31 vs. 6.67 ± 0.73, p > 0.05) between groups. There were no conversions to open cholecystectomy, no biliary tract injury or biliary leak, no other complications, and no 30-day readmission rates in either group. ELC was less costly than LLC (6,692 ± 794 vs. 8,378 ± 802 RMB, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Both ELC and LLC are safe for treating of AC, but the operative difficulty of LLC is greater. ELC is superior to LLC as it tends to shorten the total LOS and is less expensive.

Comparison of clinical result between early laparoscopic cholecystectomy and delayed laparoscopic cholecystectomy after percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage for patients with complicated acute cholecystitis

Backgrounds/Aims

In the treatment of complicated cholecystitis, laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) has limited efficacy due to its substantial post-operative complications. In addition, the clinical characteristics of complicated cholecystitis (CC) patients were suspected as advanced age with highly risky comorbidity. Percutaneous transhepatic gall bladder (PTGBD) drainage could be an alternative option for successful LC. Hence, this study evaluated the outcome of PTGBD for CC within and after 5 days.

Methods

The medical records of 109 consecutive CC patients who had undergone an LC between January 2007 and December 2011 were retrospectively reviewed and compared with the medical records of CC patients who had undergone an LC within 72 hours of (group I, n=63) or 5 days after PTGBD (group II, n=40). In addition, group I was divided into group Ia (n=46) and group Ib (n=17), according to the patients' development of open-conversion or post-operative complications. The clinical outcomes of the four groups were analyzed.

Results

There was a significantly higher reference to age, the ASA score grading, and predominant comorbidities in group II than in group I. The peri-operative results of group II showed lower blood loss and relatively shorter operating times than those of group I. In the cases of early LC within 72 hours (group Ia vs. group Ib), the difference was statistically insignificant.

Conclusions

The delayed LC after PTGBD for complicated cholecystitis with high clinical risk had better results in this study, although it prolonged the patient's hospital stay.

Percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage changes emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy to an elective operation in patients with acute cholecystitis

Many surgeons have found it difficult to decide whether to apply percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGBD) in patients with acute cholecystitis that is not responsive to initial medical management (IMMx), because the indications of PTGBD are ambiguous. The aim of this study was to evaluate the appropriate treatment for acute cholecystitis that is not responsive to IMMx. Specifically, we focused on differences in surgical outcomes between elective and emergency laparoscopic surgeries. Between March 2006 and February 2009, 738 patients with acute cholecystitis who had undergone laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) at our institution were retrospectively studied. We divided them into 3 groups. Group I included 494 patients who underwent elective LC without pre-operative PTGBD, group II included 97 patients who intended to undergo elective LC after preoperative PTGBD, and group III included 147 patients who underwent emergency LC without preoperative PTGBD. We compared age, sex, symptom duration, body temperature, leukocyte counts, and American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) class on admission as clinical characteristics. We compared the time interval from symptom development and admission to surgery, operative time, the conversion rate to open surgery, postoperative complications, the total length of stay, and the postoperative length of stay as perioperative surgical outcomes. For patients with ASA 2 and 3, the conversion rate to open surgery in group II was significantly less than that in group III (P<.05, P<.01, respectively). We recommend PTGBD as the first choice for acute cholecystitis in patients who show no improvement after IMMx, to allow the patient to undergo an elective LC rather than emergency surgery for patients with ASA 2 and 3.

Early Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Is the Appropriate Management for Acute Gangrenous Cholecystitis

Treatment of severe acute cholecystitis by laparoscopic cholecystectomy remains controversial because of technical difficulties and high rates of complications. We determined whether early laparoscopic cholecystectomy is appropriate for acute gangrenous cholecystitis. The medical records of 116 patients with acute gangrenous cholecystitis admitted to the Korea University Guro Hospital between January 2005 and December 2009 were reviewed. The early operation group, those patients who had cholecystectomies within 4 days of the diagnosis, was compared with the delayed operation group, who had cholecystectomies 4 days after the diagnosis. Of the 116 patients, 57 were in the early operation group and 59 were in the delayed operation group. There were no statistical differences between the groups with respect to gender, age, body mass index, operative methods, major complications, duration of symptoms, mean operative time (98 vs 107 minutes), or postoperative hospital stay. However, the total hospital stay was significantly longer in the delayed operation group. More patients underwent preoperative percutaneous cholecystostomy in the delayed operation group (3.5 vs 15.3%). Early laparoscopic cholecystectomy for acute gangrenous cholecystitis is safe and feasible. There is no advantage to postponing an urgent operation in patients with acute gangrenous cholecystitis.

Low ninety-day re-admission rates after emergency and elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy in a district general hospital

INTRODUCTION

Re-admission rate following laparoscopic cholecystectomy is currently defined as within 30 days of the initial operation. This may underestimate the true incidence and financial cost of postoperative morbidity. This study aimed to analyse re-admissions within 90 days of elective and emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy at a district general hospital, and to compare outcomes to larger teaching centres.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We undertook a retrospective analysis of all patients re-admitted within 90 days of laparoscopic cholecystectomy during an 18-month period (June 2006 to December 2007). Patient characteristics, details of the primary operation, and reasons for re-admission were identified, and a comparison of re-admissions following elective versus emergency procedures was performed.

RESULTS

A total of 326 laparoscopic cholecystectomies were performed during the 18-month period (246 elective, 80 emergency). No operations required conversion to an open procedure. Twenty-five patients were re-admitted within 90 days of their operation, of whom only 14 had complications directly related to their surgery (overall re-admission rate 4.3%). There was no statistical difference in re-admission rate or cause of re-admission between elective and emergency procedures. However, the mean time to re-admission following elective procedures was significantly longer (36 days; P = 0.0003).

CONCLUSIONS

Re-admission rates at our district general hospital are comparable to those reported by larger teaching centres. Current 30-day re-admission data may significantly underestimate morbidity rates and socio-economic cost following elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy.