Middle segmental pancreatectomy: A safe and organ-preserving option for benign and low-grade malignant lesions

AIM: To study the feasibility and safety of middle segmental pancreatectomy (MSP) compared with pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) and extended distal pancreatectomy (EDP). METHODS: We studied retrospectively 36 cases that underwent MSP, 44 patients who underwent PD, and 26 who underwent EDP with benign or low-grade malignant lesions in the mid-portion of the pancreas, between April 2003 and December 2009 in Ruijin Hospital. The perioperative outcomes and long-term outcomes of MSP were compared with those of EDP and PD. Perioperative outcomes included operative time, intraoperative hemorrhage, transfusion, pancreatic fistula, intra-abdominal abscess/infection, postoperative bleeding, reoperation, mortality, and postoperative hospital time. Long-term outcomes, including tumor recurrence, new-onset diabetes mellitus (DM), and pancreatic exocrine insufficiency, were evaluated. RESULTS: Intraoperative hemorrhage was 316.1 +/- 309.6, 852.2 +/- 877.8 and 526.9 +/- 414.5 mL for the MSP, PD and EDP groups, respectively (P < 0.05). The mean postoperative daily fasting blood glucose level was significantly lower in the MSP group than in the EDP group (6.3 +/- 1.5 mmol/L vs 7.3 +/- 1.5 mmol/L, P < 0.05). The rate of pancreatic fistula was higher in the MSP group than in the PD group (42% vs 20.5%, P = 0.039), all of the fistulas after MSP corresponded to grade A (9/15) or B (6/15) and were sealed following conservative treatment. There was no significant difference in the mean postoperative hospital stay between the MSP group and the other two groups. After a mean follow-up of 44 mo, no tumor recurrences were found, only one patient (2.8%) in the MSP group vs five (21.7%) in the EDP group developed new-onset insulin-dependent DM postoperatively (P = 0.029). Moreover, significantly fewer patients in the MSP group than in the PD (0% vs 33.3%, P < 0.001) and EDP (0% vs 21.7%, P = 0.007) required enzyme substitution. CONCLUSION: MSP is a safe and organ-preserving option for benign or low-grade malignant lesions in the neck and proximal body of the pancreas. (C) 2013 Baishideng. All rights reserved.