A 10-year experience of shunt surgery for esophago-gastric varices in a single center in Japan.

Background/aims: We report 10 years' experience of shunt surgeries, and in particular Inokuchi shunt operation, at a single Japanese center.

Methodology: Subjects were 50 patients who underwent shunt surgery, including Inokuchi shunt, distal splenorenal shunt, H-graft shunt, and inferior mesenteric venous-left renal vein shunt from November 1997 to November 2007. These patients were divided into two groups, a selective shunt group and a non-selective shunt group.

Results: Surgical duration was significantly longer in the selective group than in the non-selective group (p<0.0001). Blood loss was also significantly larger in the non-selective group (p=0.012). Pre-portal venous pressure did not change significantly after shunting in the selective shunt group. On the other hand, it decreased significantly from 378 +/- 39.7 mmH2O to 246 +/- 56.0 mmH2O (p<0.0001) in the non-selective group. The 2 and 5 year patency rates were 87% and 68%, respectively, in the selective shunt group, and 87% and 87% in the non-selective shunt group.

Conclusions: Our data on survival rate and shunt patency for Inokchi shunt are similar to those originally reported by Inokuchi in 1984. The consecutive experiences of shunt operation in a single center were important for the improvement of surgical skills, both of the individual surgeon and the team.