Left transthoracic small incisions in combination with tubular gastrectomy for radical esophageal cancer surgery in elderly patients / 中华老年医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the application of left transthoracic small incisions in combination with tubular gastrectomy for radical esophageal cancer surgery in elderly patients.Methods Clinical data of 83 patients with carcinoma in the middle or lower third of the esophagus aged ≥ 70 years who had undergone radical surgery at our hospital from January 2012 to September 2014 were collected.Patients were divided into two groupsthe tubular gastrectomy group (n=38) which had undergone radical surgery through left transthoracic small incisions in combination with tubular gastrectomy and the stomach group (n =45) which had been treated with esophagectomy through conventional left posterolateral incisions and esophageal reconstruction with the remnant stomach.Clinical outcomes were compared between the two groups.Results Compared with the stomach group,operative blood loss [(204.3±75.4) ml vs.(258.4±80.2) ml,t=2.720,P＜0.05],chest drainage on the first and second postoperative day [(201.7±82.6) ml vs.(320.5±78.1) ml,(150.8±83.0) ml vs.(244.6 ± 81.2) ml,t =3.221 and 3.189,respectively,each P＜0.05],pain scores on the third postoperative day [(3.73 ± 1.02) vs.(0.24 ± 1.15),t =2.858,P ＜ 0.05],incidence of arrhythmia (13.2％ vs.33.3％,x2 =4.585,P＜0.05),pulmonary complications (18.4％ vs.46.7％,x2=7.353,P＜0.05) and incidences of gastroesophageal reflux and gastric emptying disorders (23.7％ vs.55.6％,0.0％ vs 11.1％,x2 =8.654 and 4.493,both P＜0.05) were less or lower in the tubular gastrectomy group.The two groups had no significant difference in operation time,length of hospital stay,anastomotic leakage,anastomotic stenosis or 1-year survival rate (each P ＞0.05).Conclusions Radical surgery with small incisions through the left chest combined with tubular gastrectomy shows highly favorable clinical outcomes in elderly patients with middle or lower esophageal cancer,and can significantly reduce surgical trauma,decrease postoperative complications,improve the quality of life,and help patients recover after surgery.