Pregnancy after undergoing major gastrointestinal surgeries like the Whipple’s procedure (pancreaticoduodenectomy) for pancreatic neoplasm is rare. This case report describes a 24-year-old woman who conceived and delivered a healthy baby after undergoing a Whipple’s procedure 5 months earlier for a pancreatic tumor. Her pregnancy was managed by a multidisciplinary team, and she delivered at 37 weeks of gestation through cesarean section without any complications. This case highlights the potential for successful pregnancy following a Whipple’s procedure, with proper counseling, coordinated care, and close monitoring during pregnancy.
Pancreatic Neoplasms ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; Pregnancy

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the safety of laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy (LPD) in elderly patients and the related risk factors admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) after LPD. METHODS: The perioperative data of patients who underwent LPD in Tianjin Medical University General Hospital from February 2017 to June 2023 were retrospectively collected, including basic data, preoperative laboratory indicators, intraoperative and postoperative indicators, pathological results (tumor size, lymph node dissection and pathological type), postoperative complications, ICU postoperative management and prognosis. The patients were divided into the elderly group (≥ 65 years) and the non-elderly group (< 65 years) according to age. Perioperative data between two groups were compared. Kaplan-Meier survival curve was drawn to analyze the survival rate of the elderly group and the non-elderly group, and the pancreatic head carcinoma group and other type of tumors group after LPD. Logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors of ICU stay (length of ICU stay > 1 day) after LPD in elderly patients. The receiver operator characteristic curve (ROC curve) was drawn to analyze the predictive value of this risk factor for ICU stay after LPD in elderly patients. RESULTS: A total of 160 patients were enrolled, including 57 cases in the elderly group (17 cases of vascular reconstruction) and 103 cases in the non-elderly group (40 cases of vascular reconstruction). All patients underwent R0 resection and were transferred to the comprehensive ICU for treatment. The follow-up time of patients with malignant tumors was 43 (6, 72) months. The elderly group had significantly longer surgery time, postoperative hospital stay and oral feeding time than the non-elderly group, and the incidence of delayed gastric emptying (DGE) was significantly higher than that in the non-elderly group. There were no significant differences in intraoperative blood transfusion rate, intraoperative blood loss, pathological results, short-term and severe postoperative complications, reoperation rate and 90-day mortality between the two groups. In patients with vascular resection reconstruction, the intraoperative blood loss in the elderly group was significantly higher than that in the non-elderly group, and the operation time and postoperative hospital stay were significantly longer. During ICU, the acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II [APACHE II: 12 (9, 14) vs. 8 (7, 10)], sequential organ failure assessment [SOFA: 6 (4, 8) vs. 3 (2, 5)] within 24 hours after admission to ICU were significantly increased in the elderly group (both P < 0.05), the time of mechanical ventilation [hours: 12 (10, 15) vs. 9 (5, 13)] and the length of ICU stay [days: 2 (1, 2) vs. 1 (1, 1)] were significantly increased in the elderly group (both P < 0.05), and the proportion of multi-disciplinary team (MDT) was also significantly increased in the elderly group (33.3% vs. 17.4%, P < 0.05), there were no significant differences in the levels of hemoglobin (Hb), albumin, and blood lactic acid between the two groups. Logistic regression analysis showed that the APACHE II score was an independent risk factor for ICU stay after LPD in elderly patients (β = 1.737, P = 0.028). ROC curve showed that the prediction performance was the best when the APACHE II score was 13, with the sensitivity of 72.41% and the specificity of 96.43%, and the area under the ROC curve (AUC) of 0.884. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that there were no significant difference in median survival time (months: 24.1 vs. 24.7) and 5-year survival rate (19.01% vs. 19.02%) between the elderly group (52 cases) and the non-elderly group (92 cases) among the 144 patients with malignant tumors (both P > 0.05). The median survival time in the pancreatic head carcinoma group was significantly shorter than that in the other tumors group (63 cases; months: 20.2 vs. 40.1, P < 0.05), 5-year survival rate was significantly lower than that in the other tumors group (21.98% vs. 30.91%, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS LPD is a safe and feasible treatment for elderly patients. APACHE II score has a certain predictive value for ICU stay after LPD in elderly patients.
Humans ; Aged ; Middle Aged ; Sepsis/therapy* ; ROC Curve ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy/adverse effects* ; Retrospective Studies ; Blood Loss, Surgical ; Prognosis ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/surgery* ; Postoperative Complications ; Intensive Care Units

Over the past 20 years, the concept of pancreatic surgery has been updated and surgical skills has improved dramatically. With the significant improvement of surgical safety and increase of resection rate for pancreatic cancer, some traditional surgical issues such as surgical indications, timing and extent of resection are being re-evaluated. The improvement of patients' prognosis is the gold standard for judging the surgical indications. The traditional criteria of "unresectable" based on morphology will be constantly broken through, and the estimation of resectability will transition from "what can we resect" to "what should we resect". Except for clinical research, standard extent of lymph node dissection is recommended. However, for borderline resectable and locally advanced pancreatic cancer after neoadjuvant treatment, extended lymph node dissection is recommended. All kinds of surgical approaches are feasible. The approach is subject to the needs of anatomy, anatomy is subject to the needs of radical treatment, and radical treatment is subject to the needs of improving prognosis. For some patients with locally advanced pancreatic cancer, sub-adventitial divestment of superior mesenteric artery and "Heidelberg triangle" cleaning are helpful to improve the resection rate and reduce the local recurrence rate,however, the impact on the long-term prognosis still needs to be further observed clinically. The quality of pancreaticojejunostomy has more influence on the incidence of pancreatic fistula than the type of pancreaticojejunostomy. For the centers with high volume patients and the surgeons with rich personal experience, laparoscopic or robot assisted surgery has the advantages of minimally invasive, but for pancreatic head carcinoma, it is not enough evidence to prove the oncological advantages of laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy and robotic-assistant pancreaticoduodenectomy.
Humans ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/pathology* ; Prognosis ; Laparoscopy ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy

Objective: To investigate the safety and efficacy of embedding the stump of gastroduodenal artery between the left lateral lobe of the liver and the left caudate lobe to prevent bleeding after laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy. Methods: The clinical data of 41 patients who underwent laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy at the second Hospital of Hebei Medical University from October 2021 to April 2022 were analyzed retrospectively.There were 27 males and 14 females, aged (63.0±9.2)years (range: 48 to 78 years), and the body mass index was (24.1±3.2)kg/m² (range: 15.4 to 31.6 kg/m²). After routine laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy, the stump of gastroduodenal artery was embedded between the left lateral lobe and the left caudate lobe of the liver, and the hepatic parenchyma of the left lateral lobe and the left caudate lobe were sutured with absorbable sutures.The occurrence and recovery of postoperative complications (pancreatic fistula, biliary fistula, postoperative abdominal bleeding, abdominal infection, liver abscess) were observed. Results: All the operations of 41 patients were completed successfully.The operation time was (277.5±52.0) minutes (range: 192 to 360 minutes). The entrapment time of gastroduodenal artery stump was (3.1±0.6) minutes (range: 2.3 to 4.2 minutes), and the intraoperative blood loss (M(IQR)) was 300 (200) ml (range: 50 to 800 ml).The results of ultrasound examination of hepatic artery on the first day after operation showed that the blood flows of hepatic artery were unobstructed.Postoperative pancreatic fistula occurred in 3 cases, including grade B pancreatic fistula in 2 cases (1 case with abdominal infection) and biochemical leakage in 1 case. Three patients with pancreatic fistula were discharged successfully after continuous abdominal drainage. There was no biliary fistula, abdominal bleeding, abdominal infection, liver abscess or postoperative liver dysfunction. Conclusion: The encasement of the gastroduodenal artery stump by the left outer and left caudate lobes of the liver may be an effective way to prevent bleeding from the rupture of the gastroduodenal artery stump after laparoscopic pancreatoduodenectomy, which is easy and safe to perform.
Female ; Male ; Humans ; Hepatic Artery ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; Pancreatic Fistula ; Retrospective Studies ; Laparoscopy ; Liver Abscess ; Intraabdominal Infections ; Postoperative Hemorrhage/prevention & control*

Objective: To explore the development of the pancreatic surgeon technique in a high-volume center. Methods: A total of 284 cases receiving pancreatic surgery by a single surgeon from June 2015 to December 2020 were retrospectively included in this study. The clinical characteristics and perioperative medical history were extracted from the medical record system of Zhongshan Hospital,Fudan University. Among these patients,there were 140 males and 144 females with an age (M (IQR)) of 61.0 (16.8) years(range: 15 to 85 years). The "back-to-back" pancreatic- jejunal anastomosis procedure was used to anastomose the end of the pancreas stump and the jejunal wall. Thirty days after discharge,the patients were followed by outpatient follow-up or telephone interviews. The difference between categorical variables was analyzed by the Chi-square test or the CMH chi-square test. The statistical differences for the quantitative data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance or Kruskal-Wallis H test and further analyzed using the LSD test or the Nemenyi test,respectively. Results: Intraoperative blood loss in pancreaticoduodenectomy between 2015 and 2020 were 300,100(100),100(100),100(0),100(200) and 150 (200) ml,respectively. Intraoperative blood loss in distal pancreatectomy was 250 (375),100 (50),50 (65), 50 (80),50 (50),and 50 (100) ml,respectively. Intraoperative blood loss did not show statistical differences in the same operative procedure between each year. The operative time for pancreaticoduodenectomy was respectively 4.5,5.0(2.0),5.5(0.8),5.0(1.3),5.0(3.3) and 5.0(1.0) hours in each year from 2015 to 2020,no statistical differences were found between each group. The operating time of the distal pancreatectomy was 3.8 (0.9),3.0 (1.5),3.0 (1.8),2.0 (1.1),2.0 (1.5) and 3.0(2.0) hours in each year,the operating time was obviously shorter in 2018 compared to 2015 (P=0.026) and 2020 (P=0.041). The median hospital stay in 2020 for distal pancreatectomy was 3 days shorter than that in 2019. The overall incidence of postoperative pancreatic fistula gradually decreased,with a incident rate of 50.0%,36.8%,31.0%,25.9%,21.1% and 14.8% in each year. During this period,in a total of 3,6,4,2,0 and 20 cases received laparoscopic operations in each year. The incidence of clinically relevant pancreatic fistula (grade B and C) gradually decreased,the incident rates were 0,4.8%,7.1%,3.4%,4.3% and 1.4%,respectively. Two cases had postoperative abdominal bleeding and received unscheduled reoperation. The overall rate of unscheduled reoperation was 0.7%. A patient died within 30 days after the operation and the overall perioperative mortality was 0.4%. Conclusion: The surgical training of a high-volume center can ensure a high starting point in the initial stage and steady progress of pancreatic surgeons,to ensure the safety of pancreatic surgery.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Pancreatic Fistula/surgery* ; Retrospective Studies ; Blood Loss, Surgical ; Pancreatectomy/methods* ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; Postoperative Complications ; Surgeons ; Postoperative Hemorrhage ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/surgery*

Objectives: To evaluate the positive rate of left posterior lymph nodes of the superior mesenteric artery (14cd-LN) in patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy for pancreatic head carcinoma,to analyze the impact of 14cd-LN dissection on lymph node staging and tumor TNM staging. Methods: The clinical and pathological data of 103 consecutive patients with pancreatic cancer who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy at Pancreatic Center,the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University from January to December 2022 were analyzed,retrospectively. There were 69 males and 34 females,with an age(M (IQR))of 63.0 (14.0) years (range:48.0 to 86.0 years). The χ² test and Fisher's exact probability method was used for comparison of the count data between the groups,respectively. The rank sum test was used for comparison of the measurement data between groups. Univariate and multivariate Logistic regression analyzes were used for the analysis of risk factors. Results: All 103 patients underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy successfully using the left-sided uncinate process and the artery first approach. Pathological examination showed pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in all cases. The location of the tumors was the pancreatic head in 40 cases,pancreatic head-uncinate in 45 cases,and pancreatic head-neck in 18 cases. Of the 103 patients,38 cases had moderately differentiated tumor and 65 cases had poorly differentiated tumor. The diameter of the lesions was 3.2 (0.8) cm (range:1.7 to 6.5 cm),the number of lymph nodes harvested was 25 (10) (range:11 to 53),and the number of positive lymph nodes was 1 (3) (range:0 to 40). The lymph node stage was stage N0 in 35 cases (34.0%),stage N1 in 43 cases (41.7%),and stage N2 in 25 cases (24.3%). TNM staging was stage ⅠA in 5 cases (4.9%),stage ⅠB in 19 cases (18.4%),stage ⅡA in 2 cases (1.9%),stage ⅡB in 38 cases (36.9%),stage Ⅲ in 38 cases (36.9%),and stage Ⅳ in 1 case (1.0%). In 103 patients with pancreatic head cancer,the overall positivity rate for 14cd-LN was 31.1% (32/103),and the positive rates for 14c-LN and 14d-LN were 21.4% (22/103) and 18.4% (19/103),respectively. 14cd-LN dissection increased the number of lymph nodes (P<0.01) and positive lymph nodes (P<0.01). As a result of the 14cd-LN dissection,the lymph node stage was changed in 6 patients,including 5 patients changed from N0 to N1 and 1 patient changed from N1 to N2. Similarly,the TNM stage was changed in 5 patients,including 2 patients changed from stage ⅠB to ⅡB,2 patients changed from stage ⅡA to ⅡB,and 1 patient changed from stage ⅡB to Ⅲ. Tumors located in the pancreatic head-uncinate (OR=3.43,95%CI:1.08 to 10.93,P=0.037) and the positivity of 7,8,9,12 LN (OR=5.45,95%CI:1.45 to 20.44,P=0.012) were independent risk factors for 14c-LN metastasis; while tumors with diameter >3 cm (OR=3.93,95%CI:1.08 to 14.33,P=0.038) and the positivity of 7,8,9,12 LN (OR=11.09,95%CI:2.69 to 45.80,P=0.001) were independent risk factors for 14d-LN metastasis. Conclusion: Due to its high positive rate in pancreatic head cancer,dissection of 14cd-LN during pancreaticoduodenectomy should be recommended,which can increase the number of lymph nodes harvested,provide a more accurate lymph node staging and TNM staging.
Male ; Female ; Humans ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy/methods* ; Retrospective Studies ; Prognosis ; Lymph Node Excision/methods* ; Lymph Nodes/pathology* ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/pathology* ; Neoplasm Staging

Postpancreatectomy acute pancreatitis (PPAP) is an acute inflammation of the remnant pancreas in the early postoperative period caused by a variety of factors. With the progress of related research,PPAP has been confirmed as an independent risk factor for many severe complications such as postoperative pancreatic fistula. In some cases, it progresses to necrotizing PPAP, increasing the risk of mortality. Currently, the International Study Group for Pancreatic Surgery has standardized and graded PPAP as an independent complication, taking into account factors including serum amylase, radiological features, and clinical impact. This review summarizes how the concept of PPAP was proposed, as well as the latest progress in the research related to its etiology, prognosis, prevention, and treatment. However, given the large heterogeneity of relevant studies and the fact that they were mostly retrospective, in the future, it is necessary to place more emphasis on PPAP and elucidate the problems through more standardized studies to optimize strategies for the prevention and management of complications after pancreatic surgery.
Humans ; Pancreatitis/complications* ; Retrospective Studies ; Acute Disease ; Pancreas ; Postoperative Complications/etiology* ; Pancreatic Fistula/etiology* ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy/adverse effects*

A 50-year-old man with a 15-year history of elevated blood glucose and an approximately 2-year history of diarrhea was admitted to the Peking Union Medical College Hospital. The initial diagnosis was type 2 diabetes. After repeated pancreatitis and pancreatoduodenectomy, severe pancreatic endocrine and exocrine dysfunction including alternating high and low blood glucose and fat diarrhea occurred. Tests for type 1 diabetes-related antibodies were all negative, C-peptide levels were substantially reduced, fat-soluble vitamin levels were reduced, and there was no obvious insulin resistance. Therefore, a diagnosis of pancreatic diabetes was clear. The patient was given small doses of insulin and supplementary pancreatin and micronutrients. Diarrhea was relieved and blood glucose was controlled. The purpose of this article is to raise clinicians' awareness of the possibility of pancreatic diabetes after pancreatitis or pancreatic surgery. Timely intervention and monitoring may reduce the occurrence of complications.
Male ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Blood Glucose ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/complications* ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy/adverse effects* ; Pancreatitis, Chronic/complications* ; Malnutrition/complications*

In order to further standardize the prevention and treatment of postoperative complications of pancreatic surgery, the editorial board of the Chinese Journal of Surgery organized relevant experts to formulate this guideline under the promotion of the Study Group of Pancreatic Surgery in China Society of Surgery of Chinese Medical Association and Pancreatic Disease Committee of China Research Hospital Association. According to the grading of recommendations assessment, development, and evaluation system, this guide discusses the hot issues on postoperative complications such as pancreatic fistula, biliary fistula, chylous fistula, post-pancreatectomy hemorrhage, abdominal infection, delayed gastric emptying, etc., quantitatively evaluates the level of evidence in clinical studies, and forms recommendations after repeatedly consulting. It is hoped to provide reference for pancreatic surgeons in the prevention and treatment of postoperative complications.
Humans ; Postoperative Complications/etiology* ; Pancreatectomy/adverse effects* ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy/adverse effects* ; Pancreatic Fistula/prevention & control* ; China

Objective: To examine the clinical effect of minimally invasive duodenum preserving pancreatic head resection(DPPHR) for benign and pre-malignant lesions of pancreatic head. Methods: The clinical data of patients with diagnosis of benign or pre-malignant pancreatic head tumor were retrospectively collected and analyzed,all of them underwent laparoscopic or robotic DPPHR between October 2015 and September 2021 at Division of Gastrointestinal and Pancreatic surgery,Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital. Thirty-three patients were enrolled with 10 males and 23 females. The age(M(IQR)) was 54(32) years old(range: 11 to 77 years old) and the body mass index was 21.9(2.9)kg/m²(range: 18.1 to 30.1 kg/m²). The presenting symptoms included abdominal pain(n=12), Whipple triad(n=2), and asymptomatic(n=19). There were 7 patients with hypertension and 1 patient with diabetes mellitus. There were 19 patients who were diagnosed as American Society of Anesthesiologists class Ⅰ and 14 patients who were diagnosed as class Ⅱ. The student t test,U test, χ² test or Fisher exact test was used to compare continuous data or categorized data,respectively. All the perioperative data and metabolic morbidity were analyzed and experiences on minimally invasive DPPHR were concluded. Results: Fourteen patients underwent laparoscopic DPPHR,while the rest of 19 patients received robotic DPPHR. Indocyanine green fluorescence imaging was used in 19 patients to guide operation. Five patients were performed pancreatico-gastrostomy and the rest 28 patients underwent pancreaticojejunostomy. Pathological outcomes confirmed 9 solid pseudo-papillary neoplasms, 9 intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms, 7 serous cystic neoplasms, 6 pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, 1 mucous cystic neoplasm, 1 chronic pancreatitis. The operative time was (309.4±50.3) minutes(range:180 to 420 minutes),and the blood loss was (97.9±48.3)ml(range:20 to 200 ml). Eighteen patients suffered from postoperative complications,including 3 patients experienced severe complications(Clavien-Dindo Grade ≥Ⅲ). Pancreatic fistula occurred in 16 patients,including 8 patients with biochemical leak,7 patients with grade B pancreatic fistula and 1 patient with grade C pancreatic fistula. No one suffered from the duodenal necrosis and none perioperative death was occurred. The length of hospital stay was 14(7) days (range:6 to 87 days). The follow-up was 22.6(24.5)months(range:2 to 74 months). None suffered from recurrence or metastasis. During the follow-up,all the patients were free of refractory cholangitis. Moreover,in the term of endocrine dysfunction,no postoperative new onset of diabetes mellitus were observed in the long-term follow-up. However,in the view of exocrine insufficiency,pancreatic exocrine insufficiency and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) was complicated in 2 and 1 patient,respectively,with the supplement of pancreatic enzyme,steatorrhea and weight loss relieved,but NAFLD was awaited to be seen. Conclusions: Minimally invasive DPPHR is feasible and safe for benign or pre-malignant lesions of pancreatic head. Moreover,it is oncological equivalent to pancreaticoduodenectomy with preservation of metabolic function without refractory cholangitis.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Child ; Duodenum/surgery* ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pancreas/surgery* ; Pancreatectomy ; Pancreatic Neoplasms/surgery* ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; Postoperative Complications ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult