OBJECTIVETo analyze the perioperative complications and recent results of the Frey procedure in the treatment of chronic pancreatitis.

METHODSBetween February 2009 and September 2012, 104 patients with chronic pancreatitis underwent the Frey procedures. This study included 91 male and 13 female patients, with a mean age of (49 ± 11) years (range, 16 to 75 years). The most common symptoms were abdominal pain in 97 patients, diarrhea in 10 patients, obstructive jaundice in 5 patients, and 5 patients had no symptoms. Nine patients had history of pancreatic surgery.

RESULTSThere was no mortality. Perioperative complications occurred in 25 patients (24.0%), included pancreatic fistula in 7 patients, delayed gastric emptying in 15 patients, bleeding in 2 patients, abdominal infection in 1 patient, pulmonary infection in 2 patients, delayed healing incision in 4 patients, and pancreatic pseudocyst in 1 patient with reoperation. Seventeen patients with preoperative hyperamylasemia had a higher risk of intranperative hemorrhea and perioperative complications rates. At a mean follow-up of (29 ± 13) months, 8 patients had missed, 2 patients had died, and 3 patients was proved to be coexisted with pancreatic carcinoma. Among 87 patients with abdominal pain, 58 patients (66.7%) have complete pain relief and 23 patients (26.4%) have substantial pain relief. However, among 5 patients without abdominal pain, 2 had recurrent abdominal pain now. Seven of 17 patients with diabetes mellitus aggravated, and new onset of diabetes mellitus was observed in 10 patients. In addition, impaired glucose tolerance was developed in 13 patients. Among 10 patients with diarrhea, the symptom of 4 patients got worse. Thirty-one patients (33.7%) newly developed exocrine insufficiency, included 12 patients treated by patients oral administration of pancreatin and 19 patients only treated by diet control. Ten patients was readmitted and 5 patients underwent reoperation, included 1 patient of pancreatic pseudocyst, 3 patients of chronic pancratitis coexisted with pancreatic carcinoma, and 1 patient of chronic pancratitis with abdominal pain and obstructive jaundice.

CONCLUSIONSFrey procedure in the treatment of chronic pancreatitis is a safe technique with low mortality and morbidity rates, but indication should be strictly controlled and pancreatic tumorigenesis should be alerted.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pancreatectomy ; methods ; Pancreatic Fistula ; epidemiology ; Pancreaticojejunostomy ; Pancreatitis, Chronic ; surgery ; Postoperative Complications ; epidemiology ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo compare the safety and effectiveness of DPPHR with PPPD/PD for treating chronic pancreatitis with an inflammatory mass in the head of pancreas.

METHODSThe relative data bases such as Medline, EMBase, Biosis, COCHRANE Library, Science Citation Index, SinoMed, Chinese Journal Full-text Database, Wangfang, CNKI were searched systematically, researchers selected randomized controlled trials (RCT) and prospective clinical controlled trials (CCT) . The assessment of the bias risk of the included trials was according to the assessing tools suggested by Cochrane Handbook 5.1. The Review Manage 5.2 was used to perform the statistical analysis.

RESULTSIn total, 5 RCTs and 2 CCTs were included, 381 patients involved. Comparing with PPPD/PD procedure, DPPHR has no significant difference in terms of the mortality of perioperative period (RD = 0.01, P = 0.51), the incidence of bleeding (RD = -0.01, P = 0.72), pancreatic fistula(RD = -0.01, P = 0.59) and delayed gastric emptying (RD = -0.15, P = 0.10), the ration of complete pain relief after operation (RR = 1.06, P = 0.32) and the score of global quality of life (WMD = 10.31, P = 0.19).While DPPHR had significant superiorities in terms of the total morbidity of perioperative period (RR = 0.60, P = 0.008), the duration of the operations(WMD = -71.60, P = 0.03), the postoperative hospitalization duration(WMD = -3.95, P < 0.01), weight gain(WMD = 3.68, P < 0.01), occupational rehabilitation after the operations (RR = 1.38, P = 0.008).

CONCLUSIONSIn terms of reducing the morbidity of perioperative period, shortening the duration of the operations and the postoperative hospitalization duration, weight gain, occupational rehabilitation after the operations, the DPPHR is more favorable for improving patients' life qualities comparing with PPPD/PD.

Duodenum ; surgery ; Humans ; Pancreas ; surgery ; Pancreatectomy ; methods ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; methods ; Pancreatitis, Chronic ; surgery ; Prospective Studies ; Quality of Life

The main treatment strategies for chronic pancreatitis in young patients include therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP) intervention and surgical intervention. Therapeutic ERCP intervention is performed much more extensively for its minimally invasive nature, but a part of patients are referred to surgery at last. Historical and follow-up data of 21 young patients with chronic pancreatitis undergoing duodenum-preserving total pancreatic head resection were analyzed to evaluate the outcomes of therapeutic ERCP intervention and surgical intervention in this study. The surgical complications of repeated therapeutic ERCP intervention and surgical intervention were 38% and 19% respectively. During the first therapeutic ERCP intervention to surgical intervention, 2 patients developed diabetes, 5 patients developed steatorrhea, and 5 patients developed pancreatic type B pain. During the follow-up of surgical intervention, 1 new case of diabetes occurred, 1 case of steatorrhea recovered, and 4 cases of pancreatic type B pain were completely relieved. In a part of young patients with chronic pancreatitis, surgical intervention was more effective than therapeutic ERCP intervention on delaying the progression of the disease and relieving the symptoms.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde ; adverse effects ; methods ; Diabetes Mellitus ; etiology ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Pain, Postoperative ; etiology ; Pancreatectomy ; adverse effects ; methods ; Pancreatitis, Chronic ; surgery ; Postoperative Complications ; etiology ; Steatorrhea ; etiology ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

BACKGROUNDSurgery is regarded as the most effective treatment to relieve pain and reduce complications in chronic pancreatitis (CP). Two major strategies exist: duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection (DPPHR) and pancreatoduodenectomy (PD). Many studies suggest that DPPHR offers advantages during surgery and in the short-term; however, the long-term effects have not been thoroughly investigated. We analyzed the long-term outcomes of DPPHR and PD, over follow-up times of at least 1 year, to determine the optimal surgical treatment for CP.

METHODSWe systemically reviewed all CP surgical treatment reports, and only included randomized controlled trials (RCT) comparing DPPHR and PD, excluding unqualified studies using several pre-specified criteria. When multiple publications of a single trial were found, the most comprehensive current data were selected. Characteristics of the study populations and long-term postoperative outcome parameters were collected. The quality of the studies and data was analyzed using RevMan 4.2 software.

RESULTSFive trials were qualified for meta-analysis, with 261 participants in total (114 in the DPPHR group and 147 in the PD group). There were no significant differences in the age, gender, or indications for surgery of each group. At the mean of 5.7-year (1 - 14 years) follow-up examination, DPPHR and PD resulted in equally effective pain relief, exocrine and endocrine function, and similar mortality rates (P > 0.05); however, DPPHR patients had improved global quality of life and weight gain, and reduced diarrhea and fatigue (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONDPPHR and PD result in equal pain relief, mortality, and pancreatic function; however, DPPHR provides superior long-term outcomes.

Duodenum ; surgery ; Humans ; Pancreatectomy ; methods ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; methods ; Pancreatitis, Chronic ; psychology ; surgery ; Quality of Life ; Time Factors

OBJECTIVETo investigate clinicopathological features of fibrous mass-forming chronic pancreatitis (FMCP), to compare clinicopathological and immunohistochemical characteristics between autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) and fibrous mass-forming non-autoimmune pancreatitis (nAIP) and to provide evidence for pathological diagnosis, differential diagnosis and clinical treatment strategy.

METHODSClinicopathological features were analyzed in 81 cases of FMCP. Infiltrating IgG4(+) plasmacytes were counted by immunohistochemical staining.

RESULTSAmong 81 cases of FMCP, 20 cases were diagnosed as AIP and 61 cases were interpreted as nAIP. AIP was more common in males over 50 years, whereas nAIP was seen in much younger patients (P = 0.001). The amount of inflammatory cells in the stroma of AIPs was remarkable higher than that in nAIPs (P = 0.002). The incidence of neuritis in AIPs (100%, 20/20) was also higher compared with that of nAIPs (75.4%, 46/61; P = 0.017). Storiformed-fibrosis was more common in AIPs (95.0%, 19/20) than in nAIPs (1.6%, 1/61;P = 0.000). Pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PanIN) was observed in 50.0%(10/20) of AIPs and 32.8%(20/61) of nAIPs, with a greater severity observed in AIPs (P = 0.031). Tubular complex (TC) was more commonly observed in AIPs (65.0%, 13/20) than nAIPs (26.2%, 16/61;P = 0.002). Among 81 cases of FMCP, 61 cases had less than 11 IgG4(+) plasmacytes /HPF, 7 cases had 10-30/HPF and 13 cases had over 30/HPF.

CONCLUSIONSFMCPs include both AIP and nAIP. AIP has distinct pathological features and the presence of IgG4(+) plasmacyte is an important diagnostic parameter. FMCP appears to be an important precancerous lesion of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. Surgery may be considered for patients with FMCP due to its mass-forming nature. In contrast, patients with AIP are treated medically due to its steroid-responsiveness. Therefore, accurate and timely diagnosis of AIP is of clinical relevance to avoid unnecessary surgical complications and to prevent progression of the disease.

Adult ; Aged ; Autoimmune Diseases ; immunology ; pathology ; surgery ; Carcinoma, Pancreatic Ductal ; immunology ; pathology ; surgery ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Female ; Fibrosis ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; metabolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pancreas ; pathology ; Pancreatic Neoplasms ; immunology ; pathology ; surgery ; Pancreatitis, Chronic ; immunology ; pathology ; surgery ; Plasma Cells ; immunology ; Precancerous Conditions ; immunology ; pathology ; surgery ; Young Adult

Pancreatic duct stones are a common complication during the natural course of chronic pancreatitis and often contribute to additional pain and pancreatitis. Abdominal pain, one of the major symptoms of chronic pancreatitis, is believed to be caused in part by obstruction of the pancreatic duct system (by stones or strictures) resulting in increasing intraductal pressure and parenchymal ischemia. Pancreatic stones can be managed by surgery, endoscopy, or extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy. In this review, updated management of pancreatic duct stones is discussed.
Abdominal Pain/etiology ; Balloon Dilation ; Calcinosis/complications/diagnosis/physiopathology/surgery/*therapy ; Calculi/diagnosis/etiology/physiopathology/surgery/*therapy ; *Endoscopy/instrumentation ; Evidence-Based Medicine ; Humans ; Lithotripsy ; Pancreatic Ducts/physiopathology/*surgery ; Pancreatitis, Chronic/complications/diagnosis/physiopathology/surgery/*therapy ; Sphincterotomy, Endoscopic ; Stents ; Treatment Outcome

OBJECTIVETo explore the diagnostic methods and reasonable surgical interventions for the chronic obstructive pancreatitis due to the inflammatory lesions at the opening of the pancreatic duct.

METHODSFrom January 2002 to November 2010 the data of 28 patients who were diagnosed as the chronic obstructive pancreatitis (COP) was retrospectively reviewed. Out of the 28 patients, it was analyzed that the clinical manifestations, diagnostic methods, surgical finding and surgical interventions of the 13 patients who were diagnosed as COP due to the inflammatory lesions at the opening of the pancreatic duct in the exploratory operation accompanying recurrent acute abdominal pain with increased serum amylase and lipase, dilation of entire pancreatic duct on imaging before surgery. The conditions included pain recrudescence, quality of life, pancreatic changes on imaging and the serum amylase and lipase after surgery were recorded.

RESULTSAll the 13 patients had clinical manifestations of COP. However, 12 patients had different manifestations on imaging from those chronic pancreatitis imaging due to tumors at the duodenal papilla, ampulla or inner pancreatic duct. Via exploratory operation and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP), there were short pancreaticobiliary common channel or pancreas divisum existing in most patients. There was no acute abdominal pain with the increased serum amylase and lipase in the 12 patients who receiving the transduodenal mastoid, ampulla and pancreatic ductal opening incision and plasty, the paramastoideus incision and plasty in the visit.

CONCLUSIONSThe imaging character of COP due to the inflammatory lesions at the opening of the pancreatic duct is the dilation of the pancreatic duct without the chronic obstruction in the bile duct. The patients with short pancreaticobiliary common channel or pancreas divisum easily suffer COP due to the stenosis of the pancreatic ductal opening caused by the duodenal mastoiditis or paramastoiditis. The local plasty surgery to correct the stenosis at the pancreatic ductal opening and improve the drainage of the pancreatic duct is an easy and effective management.

Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pancreatic Ducts ; pathology ; Pancreatitis, Chronic ; diagnosis ; pathology ; surgery ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a debilitating disease that can result in chronic abdominal pain, malnutrition, and other related complications. The main aims of treatment are to control symptoms, prevent disease progression, and correct any complications. A multidisciplinary approach involving medical, endoscopic, and surgical therapy is important. Endoscopic therapy plays a specific role in carefully selected patients as primary interventional therapy when medical measures fail or in patients who are not suitable for surgery. Endoscopic therapy is also used as a bridge to surgery or as a means to assess the potential response to pancreatic surgery. This review addresses the role of endoscopic therapy in relief of obstruction of the pancreatic duct (PD) and bile du ct, closure of PD leaks, and drainage of pseudocysts in CP. The role of endoscopic ultrasound-guided celiac plexus block for pain in chronic pancreatitis is also discussed.
Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde/*methods ; Common Bile Duct ; Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal/methods ; Humans ; Pain/surgery ; Pancreatic Pseudocyst/surgery/therapy ; Pancreatitis, Chronic/*surgery ; Sphincter of Oddi ; Stents

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical features and management of pancreatic disease-associated portal hypertension.

METHODSA retrospective analysis was carried out in patients with portal hypertension and concurrent pancreatic diseases. The medical records of these patients were reviewed including the data of demographics, etiologies, venous involvement, clinical presentations, laboratory tests, imaging studies, therapeutic modalities and outcomes.

RESULTSFifty-two patients with portal hypertension resulting from pancreatic diseases were found in our hospital, accounting for 4% of all the patients with portal hypertension in 11 years. The underlying pancreatic diseases were chronic pancreatitis (21 cases, 35.6%), pancreatic carcinoma (20 cases, 33.9%), acute pancreatitis (8 cases, 13.6%), pancreatic pseudocyst (3 cases, 5.1%). Of the 40 patients whose venous involvement was identified, splenic vein obstruction occurred in 27 cases (67.5%) and portal vein obstruction in 16 cases (40.0%). Mild or moderate splenomegaly was present in 48 cases (81.4%), with leukocytopenia as the most common manifestation of the 31 cases (52.5%) with concomitant hypersplenism. Forty-five patients (76.3%) developed gastroesophageal varices (including 35 with isolated gastricvarices), and among them 22 experienced bleeding (42.3%). Conservative treatment was effective in controlling acute bleeding, but could not prevent re-bleeding. Splenectomy was performed in 18 patients mainly due to gastrointestinal hemorrhage. No postoperative bleeding occurred during the follow-up ranging from 8 months to 9 years.

CONCLUSIONPancreatic diseases may compromise portal vein and its tributaries, leading to generalized or regional portal hypertension. Pharmacological therapy can effectively control acute variceal bleeding, while surgical treatment is the appropriate procedure of choice in case of hemorrhagic recurrence.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Esophageal and Gastric Varices ; etiology ; surgery ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension, Portal ; etiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pancreatic Neoplasms ; complications ; Pancreatitis, Chronic ; complications ; Retrospective Studies ; Young Adult

Endoscopic therapy has been increasingly recognized as the effective therapy in selected patients with chronic pancreatitis. Utility of endotherapy in various conditions occurring in chronic pancreatitis is discussed. Its efficacy, limitations, and alternatives are addressed. For the best management of these complex entities, a multidisciplinary approach involving expertise in all pancreatic specialties is essential to achieve the goal.
Bile Ducts/surgery ; Enteral Nutrition ; Humans ; Pancreatic Ducts/surgery ; Pancreatic Pseudocyst/surgery ; Pancreatitis, Chronic/*surgery ; Sphincterotomy, Endoscopic/*methods ; Stents