Laparoscopic surgery for gastro-esophageal acid reflux disease

Gastro-esophageal reflux disease is a troublesome disease for many patients, severely affecting their quality of life. Choice of treatment depends on a combination of patient characteristics and preferences, esophageal motility and damage of reflux, symptom severity and symptom correlation to acid reflux and physician preferences. Success of treatment depends on tailoring treatment modalities to the individual patient and adequate selection of treatment choice. PubMed, Embase, The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) were searched for systematic reviews with an abstract, publication date within the last five years, in humans only, on key terms (laparosc* OR laparoscopy*) AND (fundoplication OR reflux* OR GORD OR GERD OR nissen OR toupet) NOT (achal* OR pediat*). Last search was performed on July 23nd and in total 54 articles were evaluated as relevant from this search. The laparoscopic Toupet fundoplication is the therapy of choice for normal-weight GERD patients qualifying for laparoscopic surgery. No better pharmaceutical, endoluminal or surgical alternatives are present to date. No firm conclusion can be stated on its cost-effectiveness. Results have to be awaited comparing the laparoscopic 180-degree anterior fundoplication with the Toupet fundoplication to be a possible better surgical alternative. Division of the short gastric vessels is not to be recommended, nor is the use of a bougie or a mesh in the vast majority of GERD patients undergoing surgery. The use of a robot is not recommended. Anti-reflux surgery is to be considered expert surgery, but there is no clear consensus what is to be called an ‘expert surgeon’. As for setting, ambulatory settings seem promising although high-level evidence is lacking.