Impact of External Drainage of the Main Pancreatic Duct and Common Bile Duct on Pancreatic Fistula Following Pancreaticoduodenectomy

Summary

Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is the standard treatment for tumors of the pancreatic head, distal bile duct, duodenum, and ampulla of Vater. With advances in surgical experience and instrumentation, the mortality rate of PD has decreased to below 5% in high-volume pancreatic centers. However, the postoperative complication rate remains high at 25%-50%, limiting the development and application of PD.

The main postoperative complications of PD are postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF), delayed gastric emptying (DGE), post-pancreatectomy hemorrhage (PPH), and biliary leakage (BL). POPF, BL, and the subsequent abdominal infection, PPH, etc. are the main causes of death during hospitalization. Even in large, relatively mature pancreatic centers, the incidence of POPF remains as high as 10%-40%. In recent years, various methods have been used to prevent and treat POPF and BL after PD, such as pancreatic duct stent external drainage and external biliary drainage.

To date, there have been many studies by domestic and foreign scholars on the advantages and disadvantages of biliary and pancreatic duct external drainage versus internal drainage in PD in terms of perioperative POPF incidence, mortality rate, etc., but the research results are not consistent. Overall, pancreatic duct stent external drainage is only recommended for patients with a high risk of pancreatic fistula during PD. Currently, there have been a few relevant studies exploring and verifying the preventive effect of pancreatic duct stent external drainage on pancreatic fistula in patients with high risk of pancreatic fistula. For example, a retrospective study of 98 patients with soft pancreatic parenchyma by Teruyuki Usub et al. found that there was no significant difference between groups with and without pancreatic duct stent in preventing pancreatic fistula. However, due to the low level of evidence, only a few risk factors such as pancreatic texture and pancreatic duct diameter were included, and the risk of POPF was not systematically evaluated. Further clinical exploration and verification are needed. In 2013, Mark P Callery et al. proposed a pancreatic fistula risk score (The fistula risk score, FRS) based on the pancreatic fistula standard defined by the International Pancreatic Fistula Study Group, which included pancreatic texture, pathological type, pancreatic duct diameter, and intraoperative blood loss. This model can be used to systematically and quantitatively evaluate the risk of POPF. Previous studies did not have a clear stratification for patients undergoing pancreatic duct stent external drainage, which may have included too many patients with a low risk of pancreatic fistula, resulting in inaccurate results. Therefore, it is necessary to re-evaluate the effectiveness of pancreatic duct stent external drainage in preventing clinically relevant pancreatic fistula based on stratification of pancreatic fistula risk and disease type. At the same time, pancreatic juice contains a variety of digestive enzymes, of which pancreatic lipase, trypsin, and chymotrypsin all need to be activated by bile to play a role in digesting and decomposing fat and protein. Theoretically, biliary and pancreatic juice diversion may be able to reduce the incidence of pancreatic fistula and its related complications in PD patients.

Thus, the investigators design the present study to evaluate the impact of main pancreatic duct and biliary duct external drainage on postoperative complication, especially POPF.

Conditions

• Pancreaticoduodenectomy

Interventions

PROCEDURE

Main pancreatic duct and biliary duct external drainage

Pancreaticojejunostomy: Assess pancreatic texture and duct diameter, preparing a 2 cm pancreatic remnant, and securing it to the jejunum's muscular layer using 3-0 prolene for U-shaped anastomosis. A patented drainage tube is inserted into the jejunum for effective drainage. Anastomoses are performed with 4-0 prolene between the pancreatic duct and jejunal mucosa, both posteriorly and anteriorly, with additional reinforcement at the pancreas and jejunum's anterior walls. A Fr6 silicone tube is placed in the distal jejunal remnant and secured. The drainage system, featuring a one-way valve, connects the internal and external silicone tubes to a drainage bag. Choledochojejunostomy: The common bile duct's diameter is noted, and an opening in the jejunum is made for hepatobiliary tract formation with 4-0 absorbable sutures. A Fr10 silicone tube is inserted into the afferent limb and secured. This tube, too, connects to the external drainage system with a one-way valve.

PROCEDURE

Main pancreatic duct and biliary duct internal drainage

Pancreaticojejunostomy: Assess the pancreatic texture and pancreatic duct diameter, and reserve the length of the pancreatic remnant to about 1.5 cm. Open the transverse mesocolon and bring the distal small intestinal remnant to the side of the pancreatic remnant. Perform a 2 cm side-to-side pancreaticojejunostomy with an invagination technique. Use a simple full-layer suturing method, 4-0 PDS plus continuous suturing, insert a plastic strip into the pancreatic duct, and fix the pancreatic duct stent with 3/0 Vicryl. Choledochojejunostomy: Record the diameter of the common bile duct, about 10 cm away from the pancreaticojejunostomy, and open the jejunum. Form the hepatobiliary tract and perform interrupted anastomosis with 4-0 absorbable sutures.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Huadong Hospital

  collaborator OTHER

• RenJi Hospital

  collaborator OTHER

• The First People's Hospital of Yunnan

  collaborator OTHER

• First Affiliated Hospital Xi'an Jiaotong University

  collaborator OTHER

• The Affiliated Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School

  collaborator OTHER

• Shanghai Zhongshan Hospital

  lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

80 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2024-05-24

Primary Completion

2026-06-01

Completion

2027-02-01

Countries

• China

Study Locations