Minilaparotomy for perforated duodenal ulcer

The usefulness of the minilaparotomy approach for perforated duodenal ulcer repair was retrospectively evaluated in 37 patients (26 men; mean age, 56.5 years). Simple closure with an omental patch by minilaparotomy (skin incision, < or = 7 cm) was successful in 86.5% of the cases, with an operative mortality of 2.7%. Compared with the results in historic control patients who underwent conventional open surgery (n = 27), a shorter operative time (P < 0.01), lower frequency of analgesic use (P = 0.03), earlier passage of flatus (P < 0.01), and shorter hospital stay (P = 0.04) were obtained in the patients undergoing minilapartomoy. The postoperative morbidity was identical between the two groups (16.2% versus 33.3%, P = 0.40). On multivariate analysis, a large amount of intraabdominal fluid was the only significant risk factor for extension of the minilaparotomy wound (P = 0.012). The minilaparotomy approach appears to be a feasible, safe, and less invasive approach compared with the conventional open approach and could be a useful alternative to the laparoscopic approach in selected patients with perforated duodenal ulcer.