Advancing complex hepato-pancreato-biliary surgery in Uganda: Challenges and outcomes.

INTRODUCTION: Uganda has until recently mostly referred patients for complex hepato-pancreato-biliary (HPB) surgery abroad due to lack of local expertize. We report indications and a spectrum of surgeries performed in the first 4 years following the establishment of a routine HPB service at Lubaga Hospital (LH), Kampala, Uganda. We also detailed the challenges encountered in setting up this service. METHODS: Demographic, clinical parameters, surgery indications, procedures performed, and outcomes of consecutive patients that underwent HPB surgeries at LH from December 2018 to October 2022 were analyzed. RESULTS: Majority were females 72 (57.6%) with a median age of 50 (6-88) years. Forty-one (32.8%) underwent surgery on the pancreas (PS), 34 (27.2%) on the liver (LS), and 50 (40.0%) on the bile ducts (CBS). The most common symptom was abdominal pain. Benign disease was present in 37 patients (29.6%) while 88 (70.4%) had malignancy. A total of 34 patients (27.2%) had unresectable pancreatic head cancer and distal cholangiocarcinoma missed at preoperative imaging and discovered intraoperatively thus underwent palliative hepaticojejunostomy. Only 34 (27.2%) patients received postoperative ICU care. In-hospital mortality for this heterogenous group of patients was 6 (4.8%) for PS, 3 (2.4%) for LS, and 8 (6.4%) for CBS. CONCLUSION: Despite many challenges like limited access to ERCP accessories, lack of endoscopic ultrasound scans and PET-CT scans in the whole country, late presentation, and low quality imaging especially in preoperative determination of resectability of hepato-pancreato-biliary cancers, we managed to establish a functional HPB service. Patient results achieved were good in spite of these limitations.

Outcomes of bowel resection following non-mechanical intestinal obstruction due to mesenteric vein thrombosis in Uganda: A case series.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Mesenteric venous thrombosis (MVT) is one of the common occlusive causes of compromised bowel perfusion. Contrast-enhanced CT angiography is the diagnostic imaging study of choice for MVT. In-hospital mortality following acute mesenteric infarction is 63 %. Surgical resection may be life saving for patients with peritoneal signs or refractory to conservative management. CASE PRESENTATION: We consecutively included records of five patients from Lubaga Hospital with intestinal obstruction who underwent bowel resection following intraoperatively confirmed acute mesenteric ischemia between May 2017 and November 2021. Three of the patients were female. Patients were between 21 and 45 years. One patient had comorbid conditions and an identifiable underlying etiology of polycythemia for MVT. Duration of symptoms ranged from 1 to 11 days. All patients underwent open laparotomy, the length of bowel resection ranged from 77 cm to 600 cm (mean length of 337 cm). Two patients developed short bowel syndrome (SBS) and one patient developed intestinal fistula. There was one in-hospital death due to multi-organ failure. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Morbidity and mortality are associated with delay to diagnose the condition. Revascularization is the primary goal, resection of all non-viable regions and preservation of viable bowel. Mortality is commonly related to multi-organ failure. Advanced intensive care and parenteral nutrition have improved survival rates over the years. 2-year and 5-year survival rates have been reported to be 70 % and 50 %. CONCLUSION: Good outcomes are still possible for post-operatively optimized patients despite the high mortality and morbidity associated with bowel resection following extensive mesenteric thrombosis.

Cystocolostomy as an unusual approach to recurrent pancreatic pseudocyst in a Ugandan male with dense hepatogastroduodenal adhesions: A case report.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Pancreatic pseudocyst is one of the most frequent late complications of acute pancreatitis with increasing prevalence in chronic pancreatitis. Other causes include abdominal trauma, biliary tract disease, and other idiopathic causes. 85% resolve spontaneously within 4-6 weeks. Interventions are required for persistently symptomatic, large and complicated pancreatic pseudocysts. Cystocolostomy is a rarely reported pancreatic pseudocyst drainage option. CASE PRESENTATION: 20-year-old male with large recurrent pancreatic pseudocyst following trauma underwent 2 exploratory laparotomies from a peripheral hospital, before referral to Lubaga hospital. Ultrasound-guided cyst drainage was performed. He was readmitted two weeks later with features of cyst recurrence. Re-laparotomy was done and the stomach, duodenum and proximal jejunum were inaccessible due to extensive dense non-obstructive adhesions. Therefore, we performed a transverse cystocolostomy. Patient improved and was discharged on 5th post-operative day. Review was unremarkable at 6 weeks and 3 months post-surgery. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Current management of pancreatic pseudocyst is percutaneous, endoscopic or laparoscopic drainage. However in cases of large recurrent cysts despite the above interventions, open surgery still has a role. Cystogastrostomy, cystoduodenostomy or cystojejunostomy are the commonly performed drainage options. These 3 options were not possible in this patient due to dense adhesions, hence we performed a transverse cystocolostomy with no post-operative complications. Possible complications from the procedure might include recurrent pancreatitis, pancreatic abscess and stool leak into the pancreatic duct. CONCLUSION: In cases of inaccessibility to the stomach, duodenum and jejunum due to non-obstructing dense adhesions, a pancreatic cystocolostomy can be performed with equally good outcomes.

Gastroduodenal intussusception as a rare cause of pancreatitis in a young female Ugandan: A case report.

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Gastroduodenal intussusceptions are rare and usually secondary to gastric lesions acting as the lead point. Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) commonly occur in the stomach (40-60%). Other gastric tumors include; adenocarcinomas, leiomyomas, lymphomas among others. When gastric tumors act as lead points in gastroduodenal intussusception, pancreatitis may arise due to compression of the ampulla of Vater or pancreatic head. Gastroduodenal intussusception may mimic other inflammatory upper gastrointestinal conditions leading to delays in early diagnosis and timely intervention. CASE PRESENTATION: A twenty three year old female with gastroduodenal intussusception secondary to a gastric body GIST with associated pancreatitis. This gastroduodenal mass was initially diagnosed as a pancreatic head echo-complex mass by ultrasound. Confirmatory preoperative diagnosis was made after doing contrasted abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Open gastric wedge resection was done. Patient had uneventful recovery and was discharged on the fifth postoperative day. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Gastroduodenal intussusceptions have non-specific clinical features that may lead to delays in making the correct diagnosis. CT scan is a good imaging modality for diagnosing this condition but access is limited in low resource settings. Resection of the organic cause after reducing the intussusception leads to resolution of the symptoms caused by the intussusception, the GIST and the resultant pancreatitis. CONCLUSION: Gastroduodenal intussusception is rare and may present with nonspecific clinical features. Pancreatitis may arise due to the compression effects on the ampulla of Vater or pancreatic head. A high index of suspicion is key in making a timely diagnosis.