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Biomedical subjects

W Pullano

Publications and source records attributed to W Pullano.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1993

Pancreas divisum: observation, endoscopic drainage, and surgical treatment results in 65 patients.

Sixty-five patients with symptomatic pancreas divisum were treated by endostents, surgery, or observation. In 35 patients, endoscopic stenting either alone (20) or followed by surgery (15) was the primary therapy. Of 30 patients not stented, 10 underwent elective surgery and 20 were followed. Treatment was based on symptoms and biochemical and radiologic tests. The results of surgical decompression correlated favorably with endoscopic drainage. In untreated patients, the natural history of pancreas divisum was benign. Surgery is safe and effective in symptomatic patients, although multiple operations may be required for recurrent symptoms or progressive disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Effectiveness of endoscopic drainage for pancreas divisum: endoscopic and surgical results in 31 patients.

Thirty-one patients with symptomatic pancreatitis and pancreas divisum were treated prospectively by inserting an endoprosthesis into the dorsal pancreatic duct for drainage. Pain was a feature characteristic of all 31 patients; of these 92% had an improvement in their subjective complaints of pain after sphincterotomy and insertion of a prosthesis in the minor papilla. During a two-year follow-up period, 84% (26/31) of the group showed improvement in all the signs and symptoms associated with their pancreatitis, and this improvement was sustained in all patients for at least several months. A group of twenty-six patients subsequently underwent pancreatic surgery for recurrent symptoms. Those patients who had improved with endoscopic drainage did significantly better following surgical drainage than those who had shown little or no improvement with an endoprosthesis. On the basis of the above preliminary results, we recommend preoperative insertion of an endoprosthesis into the dorsal duct as a therapeutic predictor of eventual surgical outcome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Optimal palliation of malignant bile duct obstruction: experience with endoscopic 12 French prostheses.

Large-caliber prostheses, 11.5-12 French, were placed in 167 patients (183 attempts, 91% success) presenting with obstructive jaundice. Thirty-three patients had additional prostheses placed to selectively decompress intrahepatic ducts obstructed by cholangiocarcinoma. In this prospective unrandomized series, there were 43 lesions of the common hepatic duct, 123 of the common bile duct (96 pancreas, 27 cholangiocarcinoma) and 17 ampullary. Transient fever responding to parenteral antibiotics occurred in 11 patients who did not receive prophylaxis, whereas only 2 patients who received antibiotics prior to the procedure developed fever subsequently. Four patients bled subsequent to sphincterotomy, 1 requiring a 2-unit transfusion. Pancreatitis occurred in only 1 patient. The mean hospital stay was only 3 days, range 1-10 days, with most patients being discharged within 48 hours. No procedural deaths occurred. The patency rate of this new, larger 12 Fr. prosthesis is significantly longer than that for the 10 Fr. stent, 190 days for 12 Fr., 150 days for 10 Fr. Given the advantages of the larger prosthesis, i. e., increased patency and function and decreased rehospitalization rate, the authors recommend this method of palliation for obstructive jaundice.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The needle knife: a valuable tool in diagnostic and therapeutic ERCP.

Using monopolar electrocautery technique, we have used both an electrified guide wire and a needle-tipped sphincterotome to successfully enter the common bile duct, subsequently image it, and perform therapeutic procedures when by virtue of the patient's anatomy, or because of tumor, this had not been possible using conventional ERCP catheters. In an initial group of 45 patients using the needle-tipped sphincterotome, clinically significant complications occurred in 3 patients but were not of a serious nature. The technique was an effective method for achieving both diagnostic ERCP and therapeutic maneuvers in 43 of 45 patients. We stress that this technique should only be attempted by those with long experience in ERCP and related procedures.

Ampulla of Vater↗