A consecutive series of 107 hepatic resections without mortality

Aims: A consecutive series of 107 hepatectomies was analyzed in order to identify relevant risk factors for significant postoperative complications. Methods: Amongst the 107 patients operated on between April 1996 and November 2002 at a single institution, there were 54 males and 53 females (mean age: 60 years±10 years; range: 27-79 years). Sixty-nine patients (64%) had metastases from colorectal cancer, 15 (14%) had primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and 18 patients (17%) had a range of other malignancies requiring resection. Five patients (5%) were resected for benign disease. A comparative study of significant postoperative complications following hepatectomy was conducted for the different patient groups. Results: There were several major postoperative complications observed, including bile leakage in 5 patients (5%), severe hepatic failure in 1 patient (1%), pneumonia in 2 patients (2%), peritonitis secondary to anastomotic dehiscence following concomitant bowel resection in 4 patients (4%) and pulmonary embolism in one patient (1%). There was no peroperative mortality. The median postoperative hospital stay was 12 days (range: 6-140 days). Conclusions: Formal hepatic resection is a safe procedure providing that patients are well selected. The peroperative care of these cases appears to have a greater impact on outcome then either the type of resection or the pre-existing liver function.