Search

Aims/hypothesis: Pancreatic islet beta cell failure causes type 2 diabetes in humans. To identify transcriptomic changes in type 2 diabetic islets, the Innovative Medicines Initiative for Diabetes: Improving beta-cell function and identification of diagnostic biomarkers for treatment monitoring in Diabetes (IMIDIA) consortium ( www.imidia.org ) established a comprehensive, unique multicentre biobank of human islets and pancreas tissues from organ donors and metabolically phenotyped pancreatectomised patients (PPP)., Methods: Affymetrix microarrays were used to assess the islet transcriptome of islets isolated either by enzymatic digestion from 103 organ donors (OD), including 84 non-diabetic and 19 type 2 diabetic individuals, or by laser capture microdissection (LCM) from surgical specimens of 103 PPP, including 32 non-diabetic, 36 with type 2 diabetes, 15 with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and 20 with recent-onset diabetes (<1 year), conceivably secondary to the pancreatic disorder leading to surgery (type 3c diabetes). Bioinformatics tools were used to (1) compare the islet transcriptome of type 2 diabetic vs non-diabetic OD and PPP as well as vs IGT and type 3c diabetes within the PPP group; and (2) identify transcription factors driving gene co-expression modules correlated with insulin secretion ex vivo and glucose tolerance in vivo. Selected genes of interest were validated for their expression and function in beta cells., Results: Comparative transcriptomic analysis identified 19 genes differentially expressed (false discovery rate ≤0.05, fold change ≥1.5) in type 2 diabetic vs non-diabetic islets from OD and PPP. Nine out of these 19 dysregulated genes were not previously reported to be dysregulated in type 2 diabetic islets. Signature genes included TMEM37, which inhibited Ca 2+ -influx and insulin secretion in beta cells, and ARG2 and PPP1R1A, which promoted insulin secretion. Systems biology approaches identified HNF1A, PDX1 and REST as drivers of gene co-expression modules correlated with impaired insulin secretion or glucose tolerance, and 14 out of 19 differentially expressed type 2 diabetic islet signature genes were enriched in these modules. None of these signature genes was significantly dysregulated in islets of PPP with impaired glucose tolerance or type 3c diabetes., Conclusions/interpretation: These studies enabled the stringent definition of a novel transcriptomic signature of type 2 diabetic islets, regardless of islet source and isolation procedure. Lack of this signature in islets from PPP with IGT or type 3c diabetes indicates differences possibly due to peculiarities of these hyperglycaemic conditions and/or a role for duration and severity of hyperglycaemia. Alternatively, these transcriptomic changes capture, but may not precede, beta cell failure.

Aims/hypothesis: Immunosuppressive drugs used in human islet transplantation interfere with the balance between beta cell renewal and death, and thus may contribute to progressive graft dysfunction. We analysed the influence of immunosuppressants on the proliferation of transplanted alpha and beta cells after syngeneic islet transplantation in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice., Methods: C57BL/6 diabetic mice were transplanted with syngeneic islets in the liver and simultaneously abdominally implanted with a mini-osmotic pump delivering BrdU alone or together with an immunosuppressant (tacrolimus, sirolimus, everolimus or mycophenolate mofetil [MMF]). Glycaemic control was assessed for 4 weeks. The area and proliferation of transplanted alpha and beta cells were subsequently quantified., Results: After 4 weeks, glycaemia was significantly higher in treated mice than in controls. Insulinaemia was significantly lower in mice treated with everolimus, tacrolimus and sirolimus. MMF was the only immunosuppressant that did not significantly reduce beta cell area or proliferation, albeit its levels were in a lower range than those used in clinical settings., Conclusions/interpretation: After transplantation in diabetic mice, syngeneic beta cells have a strong capacity for self-renewal. In contrast to other immunosuppressants, MMF neither impaired beta cell proliferation nor adversely affected the fractional beta cell area. Although human beta cells are less prone to proliferate compared with rodent beta cells, the use of MMF may improve the long-term outcome of islet transplantation.

The dominant role for the emergence and establishment of intensive care medicine can be attributed to surgery. The first critical care units were developed in surgical university hospitals. Numerous scientific findings and interventional procedures have been contributed to intensive care medicine by surgeons and surgical disease symptoms shaped the character of the intensive care units. Currently 40% of the intensive care beds in Germany are assigned to surgical disciplines and surgery is the prerequisite for this operative intensive care. Nevertheless, both the human and ideational impact of surgery on intensive care medicine has decreased in recent decades. Through the formation of large interdisciplinary intensive care units, surgery continues to be threatened with losing its influence even further. Now and in the future, the role of surgery has to be the maintenance and enhancement of surgical specialized intensive care medicine. Surgery has to make surgical intensive care medicine interesting and attractive for physicians again.

Cysts of the pancreas most often develop after chronic or acute inflammation of the pancreas. Cystic neoplasia of the pancreas have been increasingly recognized in clinical practice and 90% are represented by four types: serous microcystic (SCN), mucinous cystic (MCN), intraductal papillary-mucinous (IPMN) and solid pseudopapillary (SPN) neoplasia. IPMN is the most common form nowadays and main duct and branch duct types can be differentiated by morphology. This classification is of prognostic and therapeutic relevance. While main duct IPMNs have a high risk of malignant progression and resection is therefore recommended, branch duct IPMNs have a much lower risk of harboring malignancy. Small branch duct IPMNs (<2 cm) without symptoms or mural nodules can be managed by periodic surveillance. Recently, it has become clear that IPMN constitutes a heterogeneous group with at least four subtypes. Their stratification reveals that the various subtypes of IPMN have different biological properties with different prognostic implications, but the subclassification is usually not known prior to surgery. Moreover, even differentiation between inflammatory and neoplastic cysts can be challenging. Clear indications for resection are local complications (jaundice or gastric outlet obstruction), large and increasing tumors, symptoms or secretion of mucinous fluid from the papilla of Vater.

Training in technical skills is essential for advanced surgical education. Training is moving more and more from the operating room to surgical training laboratories. A crucial impulse for this development came from Davos, where the first skills course was organized in 1984 after the formation of the Working Group for Gastro-intestinal (GI) Surgery (AGC Davos). Since this first course more than 5,000 residents have successfully completed the GI skills training course in Davos and many of the alumni are themselves teaching surgery today. The level and quality of this course has remained stable for 27 years on a high quality level although teaching has continuously been adjusted to modern techniques. The language of this international workshop is English. The number of applications exceeds the course capacity every year, which is an indication for the need of such training courses and should be principally included into the skills curriculum for surgeons.

Background: Skill courses for surgery offer a good but cost and personnel-intensive possibility to obtain practical and theoretical knowledge by the employment of a close teacher-pupil contact of a large group of surgeons. The goal of the study presented here was to evaluate the satisfaction and benefits of the practical course for visceral surgery in Warnemünde after 10 years of course experience., Material and Methods: All participants in the annual course for visceral surgery were included since 1999. During this 1-week course conventional and laparoscopic exercises are performed under direct guidance of an experienced tutor. The participants are divided into 3 groups based on their surgical experience (e.g. <3 years, 3-5 years, >5 years). All participants received a standardised questionnaire before and after successful course completion for the collection of relevant data (e.g. demography, training, surgical experience and course evaluation)., Results: A total of 1,062 participants (435 female, 627 male, mean age 37 years) participated in the course. The average surgical experience of the participants was 5 years. Of the participants 489 came from a hospital of basic medical care, 499 from a hospital of maximum medical care and 74 from a university hospital. Of the participants 96% had no or only little experience with skill courses (1,020 out of 1,065) and 827 participants had no or only few possibilities for training outside of the operation room (78%). The conventional part of the course was evaluated by 77% of the participants as very good and by 50% as very good for the laparoscopic part. Only 8.3% of the participants were willing to finance the costs of the course by themselves., Conclusions: The practical course for visceral surgery leads to a subjective success in learning. Participation in the course leads to a high satisfaction and offers a cost-intensive possibility for a standardised surgical training. But there are too few experiences with skill courses and possibilities for surgical training outside the operation room so far.

Familial tumors of the gastrointestinal tract, which often appear as autosomal-dominantly inherited tumor syndromes, account for only a small proportion of all gastrointestinal tumors. With the opportunities of modern molecular diagnostics, identifying the pathogenic mutation in families is often possible, with the option of predictive molecular testing and differentiation between mutation carriers and noncarriers. Thus a good chance exists for detection of early tumor stages by individually tailored surveillance programs and for improving prognosis by early intervention and prophylactic resection. Clinical manifestation, molecular basis at the root, individual surveillance programs, and their consequences for the treatment of familial gastric cancer, familial adenomatous polyposis coli, hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer, Peutz-Jeghers syndrome, juvenile polyposis, hyperplastic polyposis, and familial pancreatic cancer are presented.

The complete rotation of the gall bladder followed by acute inflammation is a very rare and dangerous event. Volvulus of the gall bladder almost seems to be caused by an abnormal motility of this organ. Because of the rarity of this disease, the preoperative diagnosis frequently is correct. With this report of three cases who had laparoscopic or conventional surgery within a period of 7 years at our department, the peculiarity of this disease is demonstrated.

Minimal access techniques in surgery are improving. At the same time, the significance of interventional flexible endoscopy is increasing. Postoperative complications can be treated endoscopically with low rates of morbidity and mortality. Anastomotic strictures after resection of the esophagus, colon or rectum are mostly treated with success by endoscopy. Reoperations are almost never necessary in these cases today. Although the efficient detection of locoregional recurrence of gastrointestinal carcinoma is still the subject of controversial discussion, in contrast, endoscopic therapy for palliation by ablation, dilatation or stenting leads to a clear benefit for many of these patients.

Introduction: This study, carried out by the Surgical Oncology Working Group (CAO) of the German Society for Surgery, was performed to analyse the strategies in the treatment of soft tissue sarcomas in adults., Methods: In a period of 19 months the data on 292 patients suffering from soft tissue sarcomas, treated in 99 surgical departments in Germany, were analysed prospectively. A special questionnaire was developed including pretherapeutic biopsy, previous treatment, definitive surgical treatment, combined modality approach and histopathological results., Results: Thirty-nine per cent of the tumours were treated in university hospitals, 36% in medical centres, 24% in regional hospitals. During the observation period two patients were treated on average (median) by each hospital. Limb-sparing treatment was performed in 96% of the extremity tumours. There was no significant difference in the frequency of R0 resections between the different hospitals. At the university hospitals local extended operations and additive measures were used more often. The indication for adjuvant radiotherapy differed: after compartmental resection, adjuvant radiotherapy was performed in 39% of cases (19/49); after wide-excision of high-grade tumours, in 45% of cases (20/44) no adjuvant radiotherapy was necessary. In spite of less radical treatment in tumours of the trunk, additional radiotherapy was not more frequently performed., Conclusion: To improve the quality in the treatment of soft tissue sarcomas it seems to be of great importance to avoid inadequate initial treatment (18%), to respect the rules of oncological surgery (tumour rupture in 7% of cases), to improve the histopathological examination (no R classification in 5-12%) and to develop guidelines for multimodality treatment.

Introduction: Serous cystadenomas of the pancreas are rare tumors and thought to be almost always benign., Methods: We report our experience in the diagnosis and surgical treatment of 12 patients with these tumors., Results: Between October 1993 and December 1998, 41 patients with cystic tumors of the pancreas underwent surgical resection; in 12 cases (11 women, 1 man) a serous cystadenoma (10 micro-cystic, 2 oligo-microcystic) was found. Only 6 (50%) patients had symptoms. The mean tumor size was 4.8 (2.7-10) cm. Ultrasound, CT and MRT usually could detect the mass, but differentiation with other cystic lesions was not reliable. All tumors were resected: 4 Whipple procedures, 7 distal pancreatectomies and 1 segmental resection were performed. No patient died after surgery and none had to be reoperated on., Conclusions: Because of the difficulty in reliably differentiating benign and malignant lesions of the pancreas, we believe that cystic tumors of the pancreas should be resected.

Introduction: Since the landmark report by Crohn, Ginzburg and Oppenheimer in 1932, the spectrum of involvement of Crohn's disease has expanded to include the entire digestive tract from mouth to anus. The involvement of the esophagus by Crohn's disease is very rare., Methods: We report a 41-year-old male patient with severe Crohn's disease of the distal esophagus with a fistula to the right bronchial system., Results: After a long period of nutritional support we performed a transthoracic esophagectomy and a Nissen fundoplication. Postoperatively his course was complicated by pneumonia and withdrawal symptoms., Conclusions: Esophagectomy is indicated in Crohn's disease of the esophagus with severe stricture or fistula formations.

Malignant tumors of the hepatobiliopancreatic system are not curable in > 60%. For this reason, palliation plays an important therapeutic role. Indications are mainly obstructive jaundice, duodenal obstruction and pain. Assessment of the tumor's morphology and resectability is often possible only by surgical exploration. If necessary and feasible, non-curable malignancies are treated synchronously during this operation. In preoperatively proven distant metastases or local non-resectability, interventional procedures are preferred. They are efficient, at least primarily, and mostly correlated with little patient discomfort. A surgical biliary bypass obviously leads to improved long-term palliation. Especially in Klatskin tumors, palliative resection may be useful. Generally the patients benefit from palliation depends on minor therapeutic discomfort and long-lasting control of symptoms.

Spontaneous intramural rupture of the oesophagus is a rare cause of acute pain in the chest and upper abdomen. A case of spontaneous intramural oesophageal rupture in an 82-year-old woman is reported. Symptoms, diagnostic investigation, aetiology and therapy of the lesion were demonstrated.

Following resection of liver metastases the overall prognosis still remains limited because of the lack of adjuvant therapy. The number of explorative laparotomies, non-radical resections and complications needs to be reduced. One hundred and ten laparotomies in 97 patients with liver metastases were performed with the intention to cure between October 1993 and February 1998. In a prospective analysis we reviewed: patient characteristics, characteristics of primary tumors and metastases, part and extent of liver resection, radicality, complications and mortality. Additionally, a prospective study about the value of ultrasonography and CT scan concerning the evaluation of preoperative liver findings was undertaken between January 1995 and February 1998. Altogether, resection of liver metastases was achieved in 75 cases (68.2%). Nineteen patients (25.3%) had postoperative complications. Two patients (2.7%) died following liver resection. Thirty-five operations (31.8%) had to be finished as only an explorative laparotomy. The major reason for these restricted operations was in 15 patients (42.9%) regional recurrence or peritoneal metastases. Preoperative determination of the liver finding (quantity, localization and size) by ultrasonography and CT scan achieved an accuracy of 68.9% each. The results of this analysis show that resection of liver metastases can be accomplished with minor morbidity and mortality. The high number of explorative laparotomies still remains a central problem in the surgery of liver metastases. By the introduction of duplex sonography and contrast-medium-enhanced helical CT scan, liver pathology can be defined more precisely in the preoperative evaluation. However, preoperative detection of regional recurrence or peritoneal metastases remains difficult.

Mammography is an established diagnostic procedure for breast cancer. Data concerning screening mammography are available from nine prospectively controlled trials, the largest series being presented from Sweden. Mammographic screening leads to a significant reduction of breast cancer of 30% in women ages 50-59 years. In younger women (40-49 years) the benefit accounts to only 20% and has not proven to be statistically significant. Nevertheless, the major advantage of mammographic screening is detection of the non-palpable tumor < or = 10 mm in size. The treatment of these small breast carcinomas leads to long-term survival rates of > or = 90%. Mammographic screening programs have been introduced in the USA, Canada, Iceland and Sweden for women in their 5th decade of life. Starting yearly lifelong mammography-screening at the age of 40, the theoretical cancer induction by radiation exposure does not exceed 0.1%. Under highly qualified conditions, it should be possible to minimize false-positive and false-negative screening results. In Germany, screening-mammography is only introduced in patients at high risk for breast cancer. Based on medical data, mammography must be a part of screening for women with an average risk--starting at the age of 40, although there are still open questions needing further clinical research.

Numerous inherited genetic changes predisposing to cancer have already been identified and the number is increasing. Accurate prediction of individual risk by means of molecular diagnosis implies clinical consequences in the treatment of cancer-predisposing syndromes. Using familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC) as an example, we present here the underlying genetic changes that contribute to tumor development. These genetic alterations can be efficiently identified through molecular diagnostic techniques. Identification of the familial germline mutation permits one to distinguish mutation carriers from non-mutation carriers within affected families and results in individually tailored surveillance and prevention. Therefore, molecular diagnosis is making a contribution to the advances in preventive surgical therapy. The indications are discussed.

Injuries of the pancreas seldom occur in connection with abdominal trauma (12%), but they are difficult to diagnose. There is a high complication rate (35%) after such injuries. Ultrasound, CT and other means of diagnosis are only helpful in making the diagnose only in 60-80%. A clinical examination is difficult in such patients, as they often have multiple injuries. We discuss 10 cases with different grades of pancreatic injuries (Lucas), their therapy with special attention to the diagnosis, time of laparotomy, exploration of the pancreas during operative intervention, the extent of treatment and the management of complications.

We report the case of a 64-year-old female with an intrahepatic aneurysm of the right hepatic artery. Initially uncharacteristic upper abdominal symptoms were followed by repeated upper gastrointestinal bleeding and, eventually, hemorrhagic shock. Finding the cause of severe hematemesis was challenging due to a previous Billroth-II gastric resection. Delayed diagnosis of hemobilia necessitated coeliacography, whereby an intrahepatic aneurysm of the right hepatic artery was found and, during the same session, super-selective embolization was achieved. If the cause of upper abdominal complaints remains unknown after routine diagnostic measures and the origin of bleeding in the upper gastrointestinal tract cannot be identified, aneurysms of abdominal arteries should be considered. Hemobilia of unknown etiology should always be an indication for coeliacography. The superselective angiographic embolization of intrahepatic aneurysms is a promising form of treatment with low risk.

We present four cases of esophageal rupture (three iatrogenic, one Boerhaave syndrome) to demonstrate the difficulty in diagnosis and therapy. The current literature is discussed and conclusions are drawn as regards the modus operandi. All our patients were operated on. The site of esophageal rupture was always closed with a primary suture and substantial irrigation and drainage were performed. In two cases the suture line was in addition covered with fibrin glue or by an omentum flap, respectively. All patients survived and recovered was unremarkable. Our own results and a subsequent analysis of literature allow the following conclusions. At an early stage of esophageal rupture surgical intervention is indicated. The method of choice is primary closure of the rupture site by suture, possibly combined with a muscle or omentum flap. In cases of delayed diagnosis with advanced mediastinitis, suture of the rupture site should also be striven for. Additional coverage is advisable in these cases. Resection procedures with or without reconstruction should be done only in exceptional cases before of the high surgical risk.

The oncological principles of radical tumor surgery are not proven to be successfully applied with today's laparoscopic techniques. The value of minimal invasive surgery has to be critically evaluated for the radical (R0) resection of malignant tumors. On the other hand, there is an indication for laparoscopic palliation in order to minimize the surgical trauma. Many publications have demonstrated the technical feasibility with acceptable morbidity and mortality and a decreased hospital stay. For different reasons (previous operations, assessment of resectability, use of interventional techniques etc.) laparoscopic palliation obviously is realized only in a small number of patients. The most frequently reported operation concerns the implantation of feeding catheters into the stomach or jejunum. If noncurability is proven preoperatively, the rate of laparoscopic palliations probably could be increased, if minimal access surgery could take a more definite place in the wide spectrum of therapeutical options. The operative techniques usually can be easily performed by the laparoscopically experienced surgeon today. However, benefit for the patients after palliative laparoscopic tumor resection has not yet been proven. The best condition for laparoscopic palliation is the discovery of the incurable situation during diagnostic laparoscopy. Laparoscopic palliation should follow directly within the same session.

The detection of cytokines may elucidate the pathophysiological mechanisms that produce early systemic complications in acute interstitial (i) or necrotizing (n) pancreatitis (AP). The increase in the level of cytokines in the blood of patients with AP may correlate with the severity of the disease. In a prospective clinical trial from October 1992 to August 1993, 23 patients with AP were recruited and blood samples taken for cytokine detection by commercially available Elisa kits and C-reactive protein (CRP) by laser nephelometry. Six of 11 patients with nAP died either early (n = 1) or of late septic complications. None died of iAP. The peak of cytokine and CRP level in the first 3 days of hospitalization was used for calculation. The IL-6 concentration in the blood reached up to 2600 pg/ml in the 1st few days, depending on the severity of AP, and dropped to almost zero in the next days, independently of the clinical course. The differentiation of i- versus nAP, using a cut-off line of 600 pg/ml, was correct in 20 patients [87%, sensitivity (SE): 82%, specificity (SP): 91%, P < 0.001]. The blood levels of IL-8 reached a maximum of 1381 pg/ml in the 1st few days, depending on the severity of AP, and showed a correlation with the clinical course in the following days. The peak of IL-8 blood levels indicated correctly the severity of AP in 18 out of 23 patients using a cutoff level of 200 pg/ml (accuracy: 78%, SE: 82%, SP: 75%, P < 0.01). The CRP levels increased up to a maximum of 535 mg/l and indicated the course of AP correctly in 18 out of 22 patients (SE and SP 82%, P < 0.01). There was no correlation between cytokine blood levels and mortality. In the blood samples of five patients with i- or nAP, no TNF-alpha was detectable. The blood levels of IL-6, and to a lesser extent of IL-8 and CRP, can predict the severity and early systemic complications of AP. The excessive rise in cytokines can be explained by the stimulation of immunological cells (macrophages, lymphocytes and endothelial cells) in the course of AP, inducing early systemic complications.

Visceral outpatient operations are well established in Dresden. Since 1978, 13,948 cases have been operated on in general surgery. Most patients (57.8%) had local anesthesia; only 9.2% needed general anesthesia. A total of 9,175 patients (65.8%) had visceral outpatient surgery. The conditions for these operations in outpatients are: the patient's compliance, the cooperation of the family, an operating theater with complete equipment and, last but not least, a qualified surgical team. The pre- and postoperative management must be perfectly organized. Even today there are special limitation for one-day surgery. We have not yet introduced laparoscopy into our outpatient program. Oncological surgery can be performed, provided the general standards for radical tumor surgery can be realized. With careful selection of patients and the right indication, complications are rare in outpatient surgery. In only 0.7% of all cases did wound infections occur postoperatively. None of the patients died.

Patients with solitary metastasis of melanoma may benefit from resection, although diffuse organ involvement is common. Recent results in immunotherapy of metastatic melanoma are impaired by early local recurrence, leading to consolidation surgery. Two patients with solitary liver metastasis were treated by liver resection. In one patient in January 1993, atypical resection was performed after partial remission induced by regional adoptive immunotherapy with LAK-cells and Interleukin-2. In September 1983 right hemihepatectomy was done in one patient for large metastasis without preceding therapy. Until now there is no evidence of disease in both patients. The metastasis were 14 cm without and 3.5 cm after (5.3 cm before) immunotherapy in diameter. On histologic examination we found only a slight necrosis without marked immunological reaction like mononuclear cell infiltration or fibrotic demarcation in the specimen of the patient without forgoing therapy. In the specimen of the patient after immunotherapy, the metastasis was necrotic. It was encapsulated by fibrous tissue which was infiltrated by lymphoid cells. The microscopic evaluation revealed some clots of vital tumorcells. The resection of solitary liver metastasis of melanoma with or without immunotherapy is recommended. The rational for consolidation surgery for melanoma metastases after successful immunotherapy is based on the histologically proven vital tumor cells in necrotic metastasis, which are responsible for early local recurrence.

This is a retrospective study of 56 abdominal stab wounds analysed with reference to aetiology, pattern of injury, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures and indications for surgery. Indications for mandatory laparotomy were a manifest haemorrhagic shock (n = 20), evisceration (n = 13) and persisting presence of a weapon in the abdomen (n = 2). All patients who did not undergo immediate surgery were observed closely in repeated physical examination, in some cases complemented by ultrasound examination or peritoneal lavage. The indications for surgery were then based on the development of clinical signs. As a result of this selective approach, 31 patients underwent surgery immediately, 21 patients within 4 h and 4 patients more than 4 h after the initial assessment. The unnecessary laparotomy rate was 10.8%. The mortality rate was 3.5%, but in no case did death result from the selective approach.

Mesh-wrapping is a quick and technically feasible method to achieve definitive hemostasis in severe liver trauma. It can be combined ideally with conventional procedures. Mesh-wrapping has the same spectrum of indications in severe liver trauma as packing with gauze pads. Whereas packing seems to be superior in cases with bleeding from juxta-caval injuries, Mesh-wrapping is considered to be superior in coagulopathy. The Mesh-wrapping technique provides a highly selective, tight compression confined to the liver and does not produce an increased intraabdominal pressure. The mesh is resorbable and therefore reoperation for removal is not necessary. In cases of postoperative fluid collections the Mesh-wrapping can easily be punctured. Because of its own bacteriostatic capacity Mesh-wrapping seems to be superior when the patient has concomitant gastrointestinal injuries. In summary we think that Mesh-wrapping is a useful alternative in the more conservative, organ preserving spectrum of liver trauma management.

Between 1973 and 1989 a total of 388 patients underwent laparotomy because of abdominal trauma. In 98 cases, injuries of the small bowel, the colon or the mesentery were found. The injuries were caused by motor vehicle accidents in 55 patients; 12 had gunshot or stab wounds and 12 committed suicide. There were 78 patients who had sustained a blunt abdominal trauma and 20 patients with a penetrating trauma. Only 21 patients had suffered a solitary injury of the gastrointestinal tract. In 41 patients there were also lesions to other intraabdominal organs, in 11 patients, thoracic injuries and in 24 patients, a craniocerebral trauma. Combined injuries of skull, thorax and abdomen were present in 24 patients. Neither ultrasound nor peritoneal lavage allows reliable prediction of injuries of the gastrointestinal tract. In 51 cases a defect of the mesentery or serosa was repaired. In 54 patients there was a rupture of the small or large intestine: in 20 of these cases primary repair without resection was performed and in 34, resection and anastomosis. Ileostomy or colostomy was done in only 8 patients. An anastomotic leak developed in 2 patients. Lethality is correlated to the extent of concomitant injuries. Solitary injury of the small bowel or colon was followed by lethality of only 4.1%, increasing to 50% in patients with combined injuries of skull, thorax and abdomen.

Duodenal tumors are rare. The symptoms are mostly uncharacteristic upper abdominal pain or chronic anemia on account of occult blood loss. Tumors of mesenchymal or neurogenic origin may lead to dangerous bleeding from ulceration of the mucosa. Malignant tumors of the duodenum are often histologically adenocarcinomas and should be treated by partial or total pancreatectomy. If located below the papilla or at the duodenojejunal flexure, sometimes partial duodenal resection with end-to-end anastomosis may be performed. Benign tumors should be removed by local excision. In cases of duodenal malignancy, early detection and radical resection should help to increase the survival rate of the patients.