Surgical management of pancreatic cancer--distal pancreatectomy.

Distal pancreatectomy is the standard procedure for tumors located in the body and tail of the pancreas. In the last three decades, significant progress has been made with regard to technical aspects as well as perioperative care so that excellent mortality and morbidity rates can be achieved. Recently, there is growing evidence that distal pancreatectomy may be performed laparoscopically in selected patients, offering the advantages of minimally invasive surgery.

Pancreatic necrosectomy: North American mortality is much lower than expected.

Background: The aim of this analysis was to explore the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS-NSQIP) database to determine outcomes of patients undergoing debridement for pancreatic and peripancreatic necrosis. Single-institution series suggest that the mortality of patients undergoing pancreatic necrosectomy has improved but remains at 15% to 20%. But no national data have been available for patients with necrotizing pancreatitis.