Extracorporeal Hand-Sewn Anastomosis Through a Minilaparotomy in Laparoscopic Distal Gastrectomy

Various methods of reconstruction after laparoscopic distal gastrectomy (LDG) have been developed and reported. In open gastrectomy, gastroduodenostomy or gastroenterostomy is often performed with the hand-sewn technique. Therefore, hand-sewn anastomosis was performed through a small incision in LDG. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and safety of LDG with hand-sewn anastomosis.

Between June 2009 and December 2015, we assessed 263 consecutive patients who underwent LDG in our institution. In all patients, the reconstruction procedures were performed extracorporeally with the hand-sewn technique. The clinical characteristics, surgical outcomes, and operation cost related to anastomosis were evaluated and compared with the other methods.

The average operation time was 157.5 minutes, and average blood loss was 38.8 mL. The types of reconstruction were Billroth I, 95 cases (36.1%); Billroth II, 165 cases (62.7%); and Roux-en-Y, 3 cases (1.1%). The overall incidence of postoperative complications (Clavien-Dindo classification≧Grade II) was 8.0%. Anastomotic leakage was observed in 1 patient (0.4%) and anastomotic bleeding and anastomotic stenosis in 2 patients each (0.8%). There was no postoperative mortality. The cost of the absorbable threads used in anastomosis is less than the cost of a linear or circular stapler, which is often used in intracorporeal anastomosis.

This procedure is similar to conventional open surgery, and it is feasible, safe, and cost-effective. In addition, in an institution that plans to introduce LDG, the use of our method during the introductory phase of LDG has many advantages.