Colonic ischemia and perforation associated with enteral feeding through an ileal tube.

Reported complications of enteral feeding through a jejunostomy include diarrhea, intraperitoneal leaks, bowel obstruction, fistula formation, wound infection, tube occlusion, and other mechanical malfunctions. However, the incidence of these complications is very low, and many physicians prefer to feed their patients by means of a jejunal tube instead of parenteral nutrition. A potentially lethal complication is ischemia of the bowel distal to the site of insertion of the feeding catheter. The described cases of bowel ischemia secondary to enteral nutrition invariably occurred at the level of the jejunum. This report describes an unusual case of perforation of the colon in a patient fed through an erroneously placed feeding catheter in the distal ileum, just proximal to the ileocecal valve. After weeks of continuous and intractable diarrhea and progressive weight loss, the patient developed diffuse colonic ischemia with subsequent free perforation of the left colon and peritonitis. Surgical treatment consisted of placement of a new feeding tube in the proximal jejunum and removal of the old one together with a short segment of small bowel, left hemicolectomy, and end colostomy. The patient tolerated the procedure well, the tube feedings were gradually restarted, and at the 6-month postoperative visit gastrointestinal function was normal. This case illustrates possible complications of an inadvertently placed feeding tube. Not only may it cause unexplained diarrhea and undernutrition, but it may lead to more serious events like colonic ischemia and perforation.

Outpatient gastroplasty for morbid obesity: our first hundred cases.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) is a safe and effective treatment for morbid obesity. The aim of the present study was to identify factors actually contributing to the feasibility or to the failure of performing this procedure in an outpatient setting. METHODS: In this prospective study, 100 ambulatory LAGB procedures were compared with 100 procedures performed in patients with an overnight stay. The recorded variables in both groups were first compared by univariate analysis. Logistic regressions were then calculated to analyse which of the variables were independently predictive. RESULTS: The mean time lapse between the end of surgery and discharge from hospital was 8.33 h in the outpatient group and no patient required readmission. Independent risk factors affecting same-day discharge were increasing age of the patient, higher BMI and diabetes. Other variables such as patient's gender, duration of surgery, distance home-hospital, number of previous abdominal procedures and other comorbidities did not demonstrate statistical differences between the two study groups. CONCLUSION: Gastric banding for the treatment of obesity can be safely performed in an outpatient setting. Advanced age, higher BMI and diabetes adversely affect same-day discharge and should be taken into consideration when planning an ambulatory LAGB.

Enterobius vermicularis infection with tuboovarian abscess and peritonitis occurring during pregnancy.

BACKGROUND: Extraintestinal Enterobius vermicularis infections are rare but may occasionally affect the female genital tract. Although mostly asymptomatic or causing minor clinical problems, they may lead to severe infectious complications. METHODS: Case report and review of the pertinent English language literature. RESULTS: A 31-year-old, 30-week-pregnant female was admitted with a clinical suspicion of appendicitis. At surgery, the appendix appeared normal, but generalized peritonitis of unclear origin was present. Eggs of Enterobius vermicularis were found upon microbiological and pathological examination. Because of persisting infectious disease, the patient underwent an elective caesarean section, and at that time the diagnosis of a right tuboovarian abscess was made, and salpingo-oophorectomy was performed. The pathology report confirmed the diagnosis of an E. vermicularis salpingo-oophoritis. CONCLUSION: This case was extraordinary because of a combination of tuboovarian abscess and generalized peritonitis with E. vermicularis infection occurring during late pregnancy. Ectopic enterobiasis should be considered in the differential diagnosis of pelvic infections of gynecological origin.

Clinical relevance of laparoscopically diagnosed hiatal hernia.

BACKGROUND: To determine the clinical relevance of a laparoscopically diagnosed hiatal hernia. METHODS: Consecutive patients undergoing an elective laparoscopy were prospectively recruited. We assessed preoperative gastroesophageal reflux symptoms using a validated score, and documented the presence or absence of a hiatal hernia during laparoscopy. RESULTS: Of the 95 evaluable patients, 42 (44%) had a hiatal hernia. The mean age was 49.8 years. Logistic regression analysis indicated that three features were significantly and independently associated with hiatal hernia: a higher reflux score (odds ratio [OR] 2.44; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.48-4.05; p < 0.001), low body mass index (BMI) (OR 0.83; 95% CI 0.70-0.98; p = 0.029), and type of surgery (OR 0.34; 95% CI 0.14-0.92; p = 0.033). The diagnostic accuracy of a reflux score of more than 2 was 81%, with a sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 76%, 85%, 80%, and 82%, respectively. The likelihood ratio for a positive result was 5.05. CONCLUSION: Hiatal hernia is common in this population of surgical patients undergoing an elective laparoscopy. Patients with reflux symptoms or a low BMI were more likely to have a hiatal hernia. With a reflux score of more than 2, the probability of finding a hiatal hernia during laparoscopy is 80%.

Impact of body overweight and class I, II and III obesity on the outcome of acute biliary pancreatitis.

OBJECTIVES: Body overweight and obesity have been associated with an increased morbidity in acute pancreatitis, but conflicting results were reported in the literature with regard to the type and frequency of complications. We investigated the occurrence of complications in different classes of overweight in a homogeneous group of patients with gallstone pancreatitis. METHODS: Data were collected prospectively from 250 patients with biliary pancreatitis to allow calculation of the Blamey (Glasgow) and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE II) scores. According to their body mass index (BMI), the patients were allocated to different categories of body overweight. The outcome for each category was measured by the components of the Atlanta criteria. Secondary end points of the study were the length of hospital stay, the length of stay at the intensive care unit, and the number of abdominal operations. RESULTS: When compared with normal-weight patients (BMI 18.5-24.9), all categories with BMI > or =25 had an increased risk of developing the "severe" form of acute pancreatitis [odds ratio (OR): 3.55, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.50-8.40]. Patients with class I obesity (BMI 30-34.9) developed significantly more organ failure and local complications (OR: 3.469, 95% CI: 1.15-10.43). Patients with class II and III obesity (BMI 35-49.9) had, in addition to more organ failure and local complications, also more metabolic complications (OR: 7.33, 95% CI: 1.62-33.24) than did their normal-weight counterparts. They needed also more frequently intensive care and had a longer total hospital stay. CONCLUSION: In acute biliary pancreatitis, body overweight and obesity represent a risk of more "severe" disease and the number and type of complications increase in categories of increasing BMI.

Outpatient laparoscopic gastric banding: initial experience.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding (LAGB) has usually been performed as an inpatient procedure with an average hospital stay of 2-4 days. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of LAGB as an ambulatory procedure in selected patients. METHODS: Potential candidates for ambulatory LAGB were recruited from patients consulting for obesity surgery. The main inclusion criteria were BMI >35 kg/m2 with co-morbid conditions, living within a reasonable distance from the hospital, and adult company at home. The patients were admitted at 0700 hours on the day of surgery, underwent laparoscopic placement of a Lap-Band system and were discharged home that evening. RESULTS: 9 women and 1 man underwent outpatient LAGB. Mean age was 36 (range 18-52) years and mean BMI was 38.4 kg/m2 (range 35.1-43.3). Co-morbidities included functional dyspnea (6), osteoarthritis (4), arterial hypertension (4), type 2 diabetes (2) and dyslipidemia (1). 7 patients had undergone previous abdominal surgery: cesarean section (4), appendectomy (3), cholecystectomy (1) and hysterectomy (1). All patients had an American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) classification of II. The average operating time was 87 minutes (range 65-115). The mean time lapse between the end of the operation and discharge from hospital was 9.6 hours. There were no readmissions, and no complications were noticed at 1 month postoperatively. The patients' satisfaction with the ambulatory LAGB procedure was high. CONCLUSION: The present study demonstrates that LAGB for obesity may be performed on an ambulatory basis without complications.

Biliary tract infection in patients with acute biliary pancreatitis.

BACKGROUND: The presence of infective microorganisms in the bilio-pancreatic tract is believed to be important in both the onset and outcome of acute biliary pancreatitis. In this study, the characteristics of bile colonization or infection in human pancreatitis were investigated in order to optimize prophylactic antibiotic therapy. METHODS: In 174 patients, 22 clinical and biological factors were recorded prospectively on admission and compared with the bacteriological findings at the time of surgery. RESULTS: There was a significant difference between patients with negative or positive bile cultures in six parameters: Age (57.7 +/- 1.7 vs. 68.5 +/- 1.5 years, p < 0.001), serum concentrations of glucose (132 +/- 4 vs. 149 +/- 6 mg/dL, p < 0.02) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (304 +/- 28 vs. 226 +/- 25 IU/L, p < 0.05) and hematocrit (43.4 +/- 0.4% vs. 41.7 +/- 0.5%, p < 0.05), Glasgow pancreatitis score (1.58 +/- 0.11 vs. 1.97 +/- 0.10, p < 0.01) and APACHE II score (6.20 +/- 0.38 vs. 7.82 +/- 0.35, p < 0.005). The prediction of the presence of bacteria in bile by each of these individual parameters, however, was of variable accuracy. From 82 patients with positive bile cultures, a total of 150 microorganisms were isolated, including 66 gram-positive aerobes, 66 gram-negative facultative anaerobes, 15 obligate anaerobes, and three fungi. The most common organisms were Escherichia coli (20.6%), followed by enterococci (18%) and streptococci (15.3%). CONCLUSION: Patients with acute biliary pancreatitis who manifest abnormalities of one or more of the above-mentioned risk factors are more likely to have positive bile cultures. Whether such patients might benefit from early antibiotic therapy directed against both gram-negative bacilli and gram-positive cocci needs to be determined.