Management of anastomotic leaks after elective colorectal resections: The East of England experience. A retrospective cohort.

INTRODUCTION: Colorectal anastomotic leaks (AL) are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Management of AL and its intra-operative decision making is often difficult. The aim of this multi-centre study is to explore different management strategies, including different surgical options, and analyse rates and patterns of failure of initial management. METHODS: All consecutive patients who had a confirmed AL after elective colorectal resections from 1st January 2014 to 31st December 2019 were included at seven hospitals across the East of England Region. Morbidity (length of stay, and failures) and mortality were compared across the different management strategies, and survival analyses were performed (Clinicaltrials.gov ID: NCT05000580). RESULTS: Across all seven hospitals, a total of 3391 elective resection were done during the study period. 201 (5.9%) consecutive patients with confirmed AL were included. The initial treatment was conservative in 102(50.7%). 19 patients (9.5%) had a radiological procedure, 80 (39.8%) of patients required surgery as an initial treatment post AL. Of those who initially did not have a surgical intervention (n = 121), 10% (n = 12/121) eventually required laparotomy, 2 additional patients required transanal drainage. Ultimately 45.8% (n = 92/201) of the whole population eventually required a laparotomy. Patients managed conservatively had a shorter LOS when compared to either radiological drainage or surgical patients. Patients with a defunctioning stoma are more likely to have a successful conservative management and shorter LOS. 90-day mortality across the entire population was 8.1%. There were no significant differences in mortality or long-terms survival between the different initial treatment modalities or whether the leak was right or left sided. CONCLUSION: Despite initial conservative, antibiotic and radiological intervention being successful in the majority of patients, two out of five patients will still require a laparotomy and over a quarter of patients will have an end stoma.

The Role of Relaparoscopy in the Management of Early Bariatric Surgery Complications and 30-Day Outcome: a Tertiary Centre Experience.

The laparoscopic approach for dealing with bariatric complications has become the gold standard of modern practice. The aim of this study is to assess the role of relaparoscopy as a diagnostic and therapeutic approach towards managing complications and improving 30-day outcome. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective review of a prospectively maintained database was conducted in a tertiary bariatric unit. Data were collected on all bariatric surgical procedures performed between March 2013 and March 2019. Any patient who was returned to theatre for a suspected serious complication was identified and their outcome studied. RESULTS: Over the 5-year study period, the total number of operations performed was 1660 (981 laparoscopic gastric bypass (LRYGB), 612 laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) and 67 revisional bariatric operations). Early postoperative complications (in hospital or within 30 days of surgery) that lead to reoperation were recorded in 33 patients (1.9%). These complications occurred after LRYGB in 26 patients (2.65%) and LSG in 7 patients (1.14%), respectively. Anastomotic leaks occurred in 1.1% of LRYGB, whilst 0.6% of patients have jejuno-jejunostomy obstruction. Obstruction at the gastro-jejunostomy anastomosis occurred in one patient. Following LSG, one mortality was recorded following bleeding from the staple line (0.06%) and five patients (0.3%) had leaks from the staple line. Thirty-one reoperations were performed laparoscopically, and two were converted to the open approach, whilst 2 operations were planned as open from the outset. CONCLUSION: Relaparoscopy is an effective and safe approach to the management of clinically or radiologically suspected early complications after bariatric surgery. Graphical abstract.

Long-Term Outcomes and Quality of Life at More than 10 Years After Laparoscopic Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass Using Bariatric Analysis and Reporting Outcome System (BAROS).

INTRODUCTION: Literature on long-term (> 10 years) outcomes in terms of weight loss, resolution of co-morbidities, and quality of life (QoL) after bariatric surgery is limited. The aim of this study was to investigate the excess weight loss (EWL), resolution of comorbidities, and QoL more than 10 years after laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (LRYGB) using the Bariatric Analysis and Reporting Outcome System (BAROS). METHODS: Data on patient demographics, weight, body mass index (BMI), comorbidities, type of surgery, complications, and QoL were collected from a prospectively maintained database. RESULTS: A total of 92 patients out of 104 who underwent LRYGB during the study period and completed a median follow-up of 130 months were successfully contacted. The median age was 48 years (IQR 42-54 years) and 85.9% had a BMI of more than 40. The median excess weight loss (EWL) was 46.5% (IQR 27.9-64.3%). Type 2 diabetes mellitus reduced from 56.5 to 23.9% (p < 0.001), hypertension from 51.1 to 39.1% (p = 0.016), and obstructive sleep apnoea from 33.7 to 12.0% (p < 0.001). Participants reported feeling better (median 0.2, IQR 0.2-0.4), engaging in more physical activity (0.1, IQR 0.1-0.3), having more satisfactory social contacts (0.4, IQR 0.2-0.5), a better ability to work (0.3, IQR - 0.1-0.5), and a healthier approach to food (0.2, IQR - 0.3-0.3) at the end of follow-up. CONCLUSION: LRYGB leads to positive outcomes in terms of weight loss, reduction in comorbidities, and improvement in QoL at a follow-up of more than 10 years.

Litigation in Hand and Wrist Related Injuries and Surgery.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to evaluate the burden of successful litigation relating to wrist and hand injuries and surgery. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective review was conducted using the English national litigation data-base, National Health Service Litigation Authority database. RESULTS: A total of 325 successful claims were analysed from 2002-2012. The total cost of successful claims was £19.5 million. This comprised £10.9 million in damages, with £8.4 million in legal costs (23% in NHS legal costs, the remainder being claimant costs). The mean cost of settling a claim for wrist and hand injuries respectively was £60,325 (range £200 - £669,471) and £58,926 (range £1000-£ 374,077). The commonest cause of claim for both wrist and hand injuries was poor outcome. The average cost for wrist and hand injury respectively was £52,825 and £63,926. CONCLUSIONS: 1. The complexity of resolving these cases is reflected in the associated legal costs, which represent a significant proportion of payouts. 2. This paper helps improve our understanding of factors instigating successful legal proceedings to aid identification of areas where practice and training can be improved.