Duodenum preservation in pancreatic head resection to maintain pancreatic exocrine function (determined by pancreatic function diagnostant test and cholecystokinin secretion)

Background/Purpose

Organ-preserving surgery, such as pylorus-preserving pancreatoduodenectomy (PPPD), duodenum-preserving pancreatic head resection (DPPHR), or medial pancreatectomy (MP), is one of the recent advances in pancreatic surgery. There was a previous report that preservation of the duodenum maintained pancreatic function. However, concerning the resected pancreas, patients were divided into two groups; one group included pancreatic head resections such as Whipple, PPPD, and complete DPPHR, and the other group included MP that removed only the pancreatic neck and preserved the pancreatic head and distal pancreas. The present study was designed to clarify the significance of duodenum preservation, in comparison with duodenum removal, in patients with pancreatic head resection, in terms of pancreatic function, determined by a pancreatic function diagnostant (PFD) test and cholecystokinin (CCK) secretion.

Methods

The subjects were 61 patients (10 with Whipple, 41 with PPPD, and 10 with complete DPPHR). PFD tests and postprandial plasma CCK secretion were used for evaluation.

Results

There was a significant difference between pre- and postoperative PFD values in the patients who received Whipple or PPPD; however, there was no difference in those who had complete DPPHR. Concerning the postoperative PFD value, complete DPPHR was superior to Whipple and PPPD. Regarding postprandial CCK secretion, the pre- and postoperative values were significantly different in the patients with Whipple or PPPD, but there was no difference in those with complete DPPHR. Comparing the three kinds of operations, complete DPPHR was superior to the other two procedures in its maintenance of pancreatic function. There was the significant correlation between CCK and PFD in our patients in the Spearman Rank Correlation (P < 0.0029) and Fisher’s r to z (P < 0.0058).

Conclusions

When pre- and postoperative pancreatic exocrine function and postprandial CCK secretion were measured in patients with pancreatic head resection, it was found that preservation of the entire duodenum was an important factor for maintaining pancreatic function.