bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
P-BN29 Laparoscopic cholecystectomy during the era of a Covid-19 pandemic; a cohort study
Authors: Davies Sian , Ghassemi Nadar , Lo Ning Yi , Rathod Sneha , Carney Alex , Ralph Alyssa , Kulendrarajah Bravean , Athwal Tejinderjit , Cheruvu Chandra 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
The Covid-19 era has created a lot of uncertainty for management of common emergency and elective surgical conditions such as acute cholecystitis and other gallstone disease related emergency admissions. At our centre we continued to provide early operative intervention for patients presenting with biliary disease and acute cholecystitis throughout the Covid-19 era during both the 1st and the 2nd waves, despite a significant local surge in Covid-19 hospital admissions impacting on the available resources. Here we present the outcomes of our experience of managing such patients during the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 of both 1st and 2nd waves.

Methods
A retrospective observational study was performed on all patients presenting with acute cholecystitis and biliary disease who underwent elective and emergency surgical intervention at UHNM (University Hospital of North Midlands) during the second wave of the Covid pandemic (2nd CW) between 14/10/2020 and 14/01/2021). These were then compared with patients who presented in the first Covid wave (1st CW) of 1/03/020 – 30/06/2020,) and a control group pre-covid (CG) 1/03/2019 – 30/06/2019, Patients were identified using ICD-10 codes K80 (Cholelithiasis) and K81 (Cholecystitis) and OPCS codes.J18.1 – J18.5. Primary endpoints were length of stay, 30 day readmission rates, mortality and morbidity.

Results
A total of 146 patients were identified who underwent laparoscopic cholecystectomy during the study time period (2ndCW). In comparison to 104 patients during the first covid wave cohort (1st CW) and the control group (CG) of 217 patients in the preceding non covid year. Length of stay (LOS) was significantly lower in the 2ndCW cohort in comparison to both the previous 1st CW cohort and the CG cohort (p &lt; 0.0001), with readmissions also being statistically lower (5% vs 15% and 12% respectively p = 0.027). There was no statistical difference in outcomes for post-operative complications as per Clavien-Dindo classification.

Conclusions
Overall our study demonstrates that the recommended good practice of early surgical intervention in both emergency and elective gallstone disease can continue during the pandemic periods without any significant impact on patient care & outcomes. Also during this period length of stay was significantly shorted and lower 30 day readmission rates which are likely to be multifactorial but where lessons could be potentially learnt.
P-BN63 Requirement of preoperative group and save testing prior to cholecystectomy: A systematic review
Authors: Fadel Michael , Patel Ishaan , O'Leary Lawrence , Behar Nebil , Brewer James 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
Group and save (G&S) testing is usually performed prior to cholecystectomy. However, there are no standard national or international guidelines regarding the routine use of preoperative G&S testing for patients undergoing emergency laparoscopy.

Methods
We evaluated the available literature on the necessity of G&S prior to cholecystectomy to determine whether this was required preoperatively. Studies from January 1980 to May 2021 assessing the requirement of G&S were retrieved from MEDLINE and EMBASE databases. Number of patients, co-morbidities, operation performed, number of patients that underwent preoperative G&S testing, perioperative transfusion rates and financial costs were extracted.

Results
We initially screened 194 studies of which 11 retrospective studies reported on cholecystectomy. A total of 177,692/474,485 (37.4%) patients underwent preoperative G&S testing with a perioperative transfusion rate of 2.07% (9803/474,485 patients, range 0.0% to 1.6%). The main preoperative risk factors, where recorded, associated with perioperative blood transfusion identified include cardiovascular co-morbidity (16/45, 35%), coagulopathy (13/45 patients, 28%), anaemia (9/45 patients, 20%) and haematological malignancy (6/45, 13%). All 11 studies concluded that routine G&S is not warranted.

Conclusions
The current evidence, though limited, suggests that G&S is not necessarily required for all patients undergoing cholecystectomy. Preoperative testing should be performed in selected cases, for example in septic coagulopathy, anaemia and haematological malignancy. There is no evidence to suggest that routine G&S screening benefits patient outcomes. Having a targeted G&S approach would reduce delays in elective and emergency lists, reduce the burden on the blood transfusion service and have financial implications.
P-EGS20 Safe emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy in the first 12 months of the Covid-19 pandemic
Authors: Michel Martin , Fifer Helen , Moran Emily , Hammett Felix , Kronberga Madara , Khawgali Mohamed , Bonner Clare , Saab Ala , Balbola Mohamed , Saha Arin 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
The World Health Organisation declared a global pandemic on the 11th March 2020 regarding the COVID-19 infection. This has had a dramatic impact on both acute and elective hospital services that will take a considerable time to recover from. Initial emergency intercollegiate surgical guidance released in March 2020 raised concern regarding laparoscopic surgery and advised to pursue alternative non-surgical or radiological treatment options for the safety of patients and theatre teams. The aim of this study was to assess the safety of emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy (ELC) for patients presenting to our centre with acute gallstone pathology during the pandemic.

Methods
Retrospective analysis of all cholecystectomies undertaken in the department during the first year of the pandemic from 11th March 2020 to 11th March 2021. This period encapsulated two recognised peaks of the pandemic in the United Kingdom. Demographic data, elective/emergency, operative time, postop ITU admissions due to COVID and COVID related mortality was collected. Operative numbers and times were compared with historical data (HD) from the previous five years over the same time frame.

Results
399 laparoscopic cholecystectomies were performed during the first year of the pandemic which was less than the previous five-year average of 570 cholecystectomies per annum (30% reduction). 247 (61.9%) were performed as an emergency on patients presenting with acute gallstone pathology compared to 35% (HD) performed acutely on average historically. Average age was 56 yrs (16-88 range). Average operative time for ELC during the pandemic was 69 minutes compared to 78 minutes HD (NS). No patients were admitted to ITU with post-operative Covid infections and there were no 30 day post-operative deaths.

Conclusions
We performed more ELC’s in the first year of the pandemic compared to the previous five-year average as we were conscious of the inevitable long waiting lists, we would certainly be faced with in the coming months. The Covid-19 pandemic was a global healthcare crisis and one the NHS had never encountered before. At the time there was no high-quality evidence on the safety of laparoscopy on patients presenting acutely. This study adds to the growing body of evidence that with consistent preoperative testing, PPE and appropriate patient flow pathways that emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomies are safe to perform in the current climate.
P-EGS21 The impact of COVID-19 on operative difficulty and outcomes of laparoscopic cholecystectomy
Authors: Pati-Alam Alisha , Vulliamy Paul , Mukherjee Dipanker , Mukherjee Samrat 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in substantial delays to surgery among patients with symptomatic gallstones due to cessation of elective surgical procedures. As this exposed patients to a longer period of time during which complications from gallstones could develop, we hypothesised that the operative difficulty and complication rate of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) increased following the first wave of the pandemic.

Methods
This was a retrospective cohort study of patients receiving emergency or elective LC at a single NHS trust comprising three sites. We included patients undergoing surgery in the pre-pandemic period (July-September 2019) and after resumption of elective surgical services following the first wave of the pandemic (July-September 2020). We compared data on operative duration, length of hospital stay, complications (bile leak, bile duct injury and mortality) and need for subtotal cholecystectomy. Categorical data are reported as n(%) and were compared with Fisher’s exact test. Continuous data are reported as median with interquartile range and compared with Mann-Whitney U Test.

Results
220 patients were included; 106 in the pre-pandemic group and 114 in the pandemic group. There were no significant differences in median operative times between the pre-pandemic (91 (71-121 minutes) and post-first wave (86 (69-114) minutes) groups (p = 0.48). The proportion of prolonged operations (over two hours) was similar in the pre-pandemic and pandemic groups (50% versus 46%, respectively, p = 0.59). Median length of hospital stay was 0 days for both groups (pre-pandemic 0 (0-1) days; pandemic 0 (0-1) days, p = 0.42)). There were no significant differences in the rates of bile leak, bile duct injury, mortality, or the conversion to subtotal cholecystectomy.

Conclusions
Interruption of elective surgery following the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic did not result in a discernible change in the technical difficulty or complication rate of LC at our centre. Longer term studies are required to assess the effect of prolonged delays to surgery and the impact of subsequent waves of the pandemic.
P-EGS23 Efficacy of Percutaneous Cholecystostomy and Timing of Tube Removal: An Observational Study from a busy District General Hospital
Authors: Choh Clarisa TP , Majkowska Agata , Heugh Claire , Cowie Andrew S , Byrom Richard , Bennett David H , Davies Nick A 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
Percutaneous cholecystostomy (PC) has traditionally been reserved for high-risk patients with cholecystitis who are unfit for surgical intervention, or as a temporizing measure for septic biliary patients to relieve sepsis and symptoms. However, there are currently no guidelines regarding the timing of tube removal following PC. The aim of this study is to evaluate the timing of tube removal following resolving inflammation and patency of biliary ducts, and its associated risks.

Methods
Patient notes and imaging reports were retrospectively reviewed from those who underwent percutaneous cholecystostomy from January 2015-Dec 2020. Data collected included demographic details, symptom presentation, requirement of ITU admissions, details of cholecystostomy, post-operative complications from the tube, outcomes following PC, and mortality rates within 30 days of the procedure. Patients were graded by their severity of their cholecystitis according to the 2018 Tokyo Guidelines, and these were correlated with morbidity and mortality outcomes within 1 year of the procedure.

Results
There were 55 females and 65 males, with a mean age of 75.2 years (range 45-96 years). Approximately 45% of patients were diabetic and had comorbidities. On presentation, 54% (65/120) patients had elevated inflammatory markers (WCC/CRP), and 20% of patients had associated deranged liver function tests. Majority of patients had moderate or severe acute cholecystitis, with over 25% (31/120) of patients presenting with sepsis, and 6 required admission to intensive care. The median time from diagnosis of acute cholecystitis to percutaneous cholecystostomy was 8.5 days (range 1-64 days). Tube removal was performed after a median time of 31 days (range 1-142 days). Morbidity rate was observed to be 8-10%, comprising of complications such as tube displacement, leakage around the drain, bleeding and liver abscesses. Only 18.3% (22/120) of patients were deemed to be fit for further surgical intervention, of which 13 of those underwent a cholecystectomy thereafter. Unsurprisingly, 38% of these patients had recurrent biliary symptoms, and a 30% mortality rate.

Conclusions
Percutaneous cholecystostomy is a safe option in high-risk surgical patients for symptom relief, and is a crucial step in temporizing and de-escalating sepsis. However, this study suggests that timing of cholecystostomy removal is variable, and is associated with high morbidity. Consideration needs to be given to shorten the time to tube removal, to minimise risks, if certain criteria are met to ensure safety and efficacy.
P-EGS27 Outcomes of disorders of the gallbladder, biliary tract, and pancreas during COVID pandemic
Authors: Thomas Christophe , Dowker Freddie , O'Connor Hettie , Horgan Liam 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
Biliary disorders make up a significant proportion of the acute general surgical workload. Effective management allows definitive treatment with relief of symptoms and reduced impact to patients due to recurrent admissions and complications. During the first COVID-19 wave and lockdown there were reduced surgical presentations to hospital and patients presented later. Surgical services were forced to implement different practices including more conservative/non operative management potentially increasing the possibility of recurrent presentations and greater complications in biliary-pancreatic presentations.

Methods
We performed a retrospective audit of patients presenting to our unit with ICD 10 codes: K80;Cholelithiasis, K81;Cholecystitis and K85;Acute pancreatitis. We used the period of the first wave of the COVID pandemic March – August 2020(COVID) and compared this to the same period in 2019(pre-COVID). On note review those with inaccurate coding were excluded. Patient demographics, admission details, investigations, surgical management, operative details, and post-operative complications were recorded. The primary outcomes were change in operative management, representation, and post-operative complications. χ2 test was used to test for significance of categorical variables.

Results

Conclusions
The two groups were demographically similar with equal spread of primary diagnoses however there were significant differences in outcomes. Patients presenting with cholecystitis and gallstone pancreatitis had significantly reduced rates of definitive management. The increase in adverse operative findings is likely secondary to patients presenting later and initial conservative management. The increase in complications for the COVID cohort correlates with the increase in adverse findings/operative complexity. Conservative management with the aim of reducing COVID exposure inadvertently resulted in increased risk to patients with increased presentations/admissions. Despite this risk there were no COVID cases in our cohort.
P-EUS03 Risk prediction in patients undergoing Endoscopic Necrosectomy for infected pancreatic necrosis
Authors: Britton Emily , Smith Eleanor , Hollyman Marianne , Strickland Andrew 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
Laparotomy for the treatment of patients with infected pancreatic necrosis is associated with high rates of morbidity (∼95%) and mortality (∼50%); this has driven the development of minimally invasive alternatives for the treatment of such cases. Endoscopic Transgastric Necrosectomy (ETN) is an accepted method for debriding infected necrosis in these challenging cases. The National Emergency Laparotomy Audit (NELA) and P-POSSUM scoring systems are well-validated risk stratification tools used nationally for patients undergoing emergency laparotomy. This work aims to determine whether patients undergoing ETN for infected pancreatic necrosis can be risk stratified accurately using both the NELA and P-POSSUM scoring systems.

Methods
A prospective database of all patients in a single UK centre undergoing ETN from 2011 to 2021 for infected pancreatic necrosis has been maintained. All patients initially underwent an EUS guided stent placement to create a cystgastrostomy before subsequent transgastric necrosectomy.
Patient demographics, timing of procedures and short-term post procedural outcomes were recorded. The NELA and P-POSSUM score was calculated at the time of the endoscopic cystgastrostomy.
Demographic data were descriptively summarized and ROC analysis was performed to assess the diagnostic accuracy of both the P-POSSUM and NELA score. Data are presented as median (range)

Results
Sixty-nine patients underwent ETN between 2011 and 2021 with a median age of 54 years-(15-86). Twenty-nine patients-(42%) required ITU admission during their admission.
The actual mortality was 10.1%-(7), which was slightly higher than the median of the NELA predicted mortality-(6.7%) but half the median of the P-POSSUM predicted mortality-(21.1%).
Median overall predicted mortality for ETN using P-POSSUM was 21.1%-(2.6-85.7%) and with NELA was 6.7%-(0.4-34.3%). The median P-POSSUM score of the patients who died was 33.2%-(6.9-52.4%) compared to the median NELA score which was 17.2%-(0.8-34.3%). The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve-(AUROC) was similar for both the NELA-(0.82, SE = 0.13) and P-POSSUM-(0.75,-SE=0.1).

Conclusions
Endoscopic Transgastric Necrosectomy is a safe alternative to emergency laparotomy for the debridement of infected pancreatic necrosis. Both the NELA and P-POSSUM scoring systems can effectively stratify those patients at highest risk, however where P-POSSUM scoring may overestimate mortality NELA scoring may underestimate the severity of illness and mortality associated with the disease.
P-L15 Fluorescence guided laparoscopic resection of Colorectal Liver Metastases: Same day administration of indocyanine green with use of SPY- Colour Segmented Fluorescence imaging to identify tumours intra-operatively
Authors: Benjafield Anastasia , Tanase Andrei , Aroori Somaiah 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
Near-infrared fluorescent (NIRF) imaging using indocyanine green (ICG) has various applications in minimally invasive surgery. There are a number of techniques in timing and dose administration. Visually different fluorescent enhancement patterns correlate with different pathologies to aid identification of lesions intra-operatively. The aim of this study is to present our experience with utilisation of Colour Segmented Fluorescence ICG mode in laparoscopic liver surgery for colorectal liver metastases.

Methods
We present a single surgeon (SA) experience with the use of laparoscopic fluorescence guided imaging surgery (L-FGIS). Between November 2020 and July 20201, L-FGIS was used in seven patients with suspected CRLM. ICG was administered intravenously at a dose of 0.2 to 0.3 mg/kg IV 2-3 hours prior to liver surgery. Through use of the SPY Colour Segmented Fluorescence (CSF) imaging mode, the image is scaled as to NIRF fluorescence intensity to allow for the clear identification of the CRLM intra-operatively.

Results
A total of seven patients (Four males) with median age of 74.3 years (range: 30.5 -86) underwent L-FGIS during the study period. Two out of seven patients underwent re-do liver surgery. The median size of the tumour was 27mm (range: 10-65mm) and median number of tumours were one (range: 1-2). To visualise the tumour and to avoid interference of green background liver, ICG camera was switched to CSF mode. All lesions had signet ring appearance under CSF mode (see figure 1). Except in one patient (necrotic lesion), the histology of resected specimen contained a well to moderately differentiated colorectal adenocarcinoma metastasis. R0 resection was achieved in all patients and median clearance of the tumour was 3mm (range 0.4-10mm).

Conclusions
In our limited experience ICG administered at least 2-3 hours prior to surgery can identify superficially located colorectal metastases, provided ICG camera is switched to CSF mode. Superficially located lesions are easily identifiable under CSF mode. CSF mode helped us to identify the lesions and to mark the resection margin. The use of ICG is an important advancement in CRLM surgery and further research is needed to optimise image interpretation and correlate with clinical resection outcomes.
P-O03 The Management of Gallbladder Polyps at a Single Trust: Are we compliant with European Guidelines?
Authors: Jamieson Elias , Short Chloe , Clifford Rachael , Rajput Kunal 
Published: December 2021

Abstract

Background
Gallbladder polyps affect approximately 5% of the global population, with rates highest in those of Indian descent. 10% of polyps will have malignant potential based on their size or rapid growth rate, which are associated with a poor 5-year survival once advanced of less than 25%. As gallbladder polyps are common but gallbladder cancer is rare, it is a diagnostic challenge to determine which polyps are likely to be malignant. Adherence to guidelines regarding radiological follow up and definitive treatment, in the form of a cholecystectomy, is therefore vital.

Methods
Retrospective data collection and analysis was completed for all patients who had a biliary ultrasound between December 2013 and December 2016 to enable 5-year follow up, and a snapshot of 47 patients selected at random. Patients having a gallbladder “polyp” documented on their scan report were eligible for inclusion and adherence to European Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology (ESGAR) guidelines was assessed.

Results
Within the cohort there was a mean age of 56 years, with a male:female ratio of 17:30. All patients included were Caucasian, with 41 reporting “biliary symptoms” as the indication for the primary ultrasound. 26 patients were not followed up in adherence to guidelines, with 50% due to the sonographer reporting follow-up was not indicated on initial scan, 5 having unchanged polyp size and 2 discharged by the responsible consultant. Of the 21 who were followed up according to guidelines, 20 had a cholecystectomy within 5years, with none of these patients having cancer detected on histology.

Conclusions
Over 50% of patients within our cohort were not followed up according to the ESGAR guidelines. Although no patients in the study were found to have malignant polyps, the sample size is relatively small and limited to low-risk groups. We aim to expand this audit both locally and regionally, raise awareness of the importance of surveillance across the multi-disciplinary team, and produce local guidance for the outpatient setting.