Risk factors for anastomotic leakage after anterior resection for rectal adenocarcinoma.

Background: Anastomotic leakage (AL) is an important cause of morbidity after surgery for rectal cancer.
Aim: to analyze the risk factors associated with anastomotic leakage after anterior resection for rectal adenocarcinoma.
Methods: We collected data from all the patients who had surgical resection with an anastomosis, for rectal adenocarcinoma at the Surgical Clinic C (Ibn Sina Hospital, Rabat, Morocco), between January 2001 and December 2010. The associations between variables and anastomotic leakage were studied using univariate and multivariate analysis.
Results: Our study included 130 patients. Anastomotic leakage occurred in 28 patients (21.5%). Univariate and multivariate analysis showed that the rate of anastomotic leakage was significantly higher in patients who received preoperative radiotherapy (34.2% vs. 12 %, p = 0.002 - OR 3.8 - CI 95%: 1.5 - 9.4). There was no significant difference in the rate of AL between patients with or without a protective stoma. In the group of patients with AL, the rate of reoperation was significantly lower in patients with a stoma protection (31.8% vs. 83.3%, p = 0.04).
Conclusion: Radiotherapy is a risk factor for anastomotic leakage. The systematic design of a protective stoma in patients receiving neoadjuvant radiotherapy is advisable to reduce the rate of reoperations associated with AL.