The value of serum amylase and drain fluid amylase to predict postoperative pancreatic fistula after pancreatoduodenectomy: a retrospective cohort study.

PURPOSE: Serum and drain amylase have been identified as important predictors of postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) and might be useful to guide postoperative drain management after pancreatoduodenectomy. We aimed to determine and compare the value of serum amylase and drain fluid amylase to predict postoperative pancreatic fistula after pancreatoduodenectomy. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included patients after pancreatoduodenectomy from 2012 to 2019. The primary endpoint of our study was grade B/C POPF. Serum amylase on postoperative day 1 (SA-1) and drain fluid amylase on postoperative day 2 (DFA-2) were analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 92 of 437 patients (21.1%) developed a grade B/C POPF. SA-1 was higher in patients who developed a grade B/C POPF (336 U/L vs. 97 U/L, p<0.001). Similarly, DFA-2 was higher in patients who developed a grade B/C POPF (1764 U/L vs. 78 U/L, p<0.001). SA-1 and DFA-2 had similar predictive accuracy (AUC: 0.82 vs. 0.85, respectively, p=0.329). Patients with SA-1<100 U/L (n=178) had a risk of 2.2% of developing grade B/C POPF, compared to 38.2% in patients with SA-1 >100 U/L (n=207). Patients with DFA-2<100 U/L (n=141) had a risk of 0% of developing grade B/C POPF, compared to 36.2% in patients with DFA-2>100 U/L (n=196). SA-1 and DFA-2 were strongly associated at a cut-off of 100 U/L (p<0.001, 89% concordance rate). CONCLUSION: Postoperative serum and drain amylase values below 100 U/L both effectively rule out POPF after pancreatoduodenectomy. The advantage of serum amylase measurement is that it can be used in patients who are managed without surgical drains.

C-reactive protein is superior to white blood cell count for early detection of complications after pancreatoduodenectomy: a retrospective multicenter cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Early detection of major complications after pancreatoduodenectomy could improve patient management and decrease the "failure-to-rescue" rate. In this retrospective cohort study, we aimed to compare the value of C-reactive protein (CRP) and white blood cell count (WBC) in the early detection of complications after pancreatoduodenectomy. METHODS: We assessed pancreatoduodenectomies between January 2012 and December 2017. Major complications were defined as grade III or higher according to the Clavien-Dindo classification. Postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) was a secondary endpoint. ROC-curve and logistic regression analysis were performed for CRP and WBC. Results were validated in an external cohort. RESULTS: In the development cohort (n = 285), 103 (36.1%) patients experienced a major complication. CRP was superior to WBC in detecting major complications on postoperative day (POD) 3 (AUC:0.74 vs. 0.54, P < 0.001) and POD 5 (AUC:0.77 vs. 0.68, P = 0.031), however not on POD 7 (AUC:0.77 vs. 0.76, P = 0.773). These results were confirmed in multivariable analysis and in the validation cohort (n = 202). CRP was also superior to WBC in detecting POPF on POD 3 (AUC: 0.78 vs. 0.54, P < 0.001) and POD 5 (AUC: 0.83 vs. 0.71, P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: CRP appears to be superior to WBC in the early detection of major complications and POPF after pancreatoduodenectomy.