Randomized clinical trial of laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication compared with proton-pump inhibitors for treatment of chronic gastro-oesophageal reflux

Laparoscopic antireflux surgery in the elderly

BACKGROUND

Both gastroesophageal reflux and paraesophageal hernias are more common in the elderly, but often these patients are not referred for surgery because of their age. In this study we determined the outcome for laparoscopic antireflux surgery in patients aged 70 years or older, in whom either symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux or a large paraesophageal hernia was the indication for surgery.

METHOD

From a prospectively maintained clinical database of patients undergoing laparoscopic antireflux surgery, all patients aged 70 years or older were identified and their outcome was determined.

RESULTS

Two hundred ten patients were identified. In 129 a large paraesophageal hiatus hernia was the primary indication for surgery, and in 81 patients the indication was reflux. Mean operation time was significantly longer in patients undergoing surgery for a large hiatus hernia (109 vs. 72 min), and conversion to open surgery was required more often (11.6% vs. 4.4%), compared to patients with reflux alone. Follow-up information was available for 95% of patients. Postoperative symptom scores for heartburn and dysphagia improved significantly and patients' satisfaction with surgery was high.

CONCLUSION

Laparoscopic antireflux surgery in patients aged 70 years or older has a satisfactory clinical outcome. Elderly patients should not be refused laparoscopic antireflux surgery only because of their age.

Complications and frequency of redo antireflux surgery in Denmark: a nationwide study, 1997-2005

BACKGROUND

Outcomes after redo fundoplication (RF) in recurrent gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) are debatable, and they may include lower success rates with higher postoperative morbidity and mortality than outcomes after primary fundoplication (PF). However, data from large, nationwide studies are not available. Accordingly, the aim of the present study was to evaluate nationwide Danish data on RF in a nine-year period.

METHOD

Data in the period from 1997 through 2005 were extracted from the National Patient Register. The following information was procured: frequency of RF, rate of conversion to open surgery, rate of complications requiring reoperation, and 30-day mortality. Data for RF were compared to PF.

RESULTS

A total of 2589 fundoplications were performed in 2465 patients. Thus, 113 patients underwent a total of 124 RF (RF rate = 5.0%). Most RF (84.7%) were performed at high-volume departments. Patients who underwent RF were converted to open surgery more often (16.1% vs. 6.1% in PF) (P < 0.0001). The median postoperative hospital stay was 3 days after RF and 2 days after PF (P = 0.96). Following RF 1.6% of the patients had complications requiring surgery compared with 1.3% after PF (P = 0.79), and 30-day mortality was 0.81% after RF compared with 0.45% after PF (P = 0.57).

CONCLUSION

This nationwide Danish study showed a low rate of redo fundoplication and a similar morbidity and mortality rate after redo surgery compared with that of primary surgery.

Who will fail laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication? Preoperative prediction of long-term outcomes

BACKGROUND

A small but significant percentage of patients are considered failures after laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication (LNF). We sought to identify preoperative predictors of failure in a cohort of patients who underwent LNF more than 10 years ago.

METHODS

Of 312 consecutive patients undergoing primary LNF between 1992 and 1995, recent follow-up was obtained from 166 patients at a mean of 11.0 +/- 1.2 years. Eight additional patients who underwent reoperation were lost to follow-up but are included. Failure is broadly defined as any reoperation, lack of satisfaction, or any severe symptoms at follow-up. Potential predictors evaluated included sex, age, body-mass index (BMI), response to acid reducing medications (ARM), psychiatric history, typical versus atypical symptoms, manometry, esophageal pH, and others. Logistic regression was used to assess significance of predictors in univariate analysis.

RESULTS

Of 174 known outcomes, 131 were classified as successful (75.3%), while 43 were failures (24.7%): 26 reoperations, 13 unsatisfied, and 13 with severe symptoms. Response and lack of response to ARM were associated with 77.1% and 56.0% success rates respectively (P = 0.035). Eighty five percent of patients with typical symptoms had a successful outcome, compared to only 41% with atypical symptoms (P < 0.001). Preoperative morbid obesity (BMI > 35 kg/m2) was associated with failure (P = 0.036), while obesity (BMI 30-34.9 kg/m2) was not. A history of psychiatric illness trended toward significance (P = 0.06).

CONCLUSIONS

In a cohort with 11 years follow-up after LNF, factors predictive of a successful outcome include preoperative response to ARM, typical symptoms, and BMI < 35 kg/m2. Patients with atypical symptoms, no response to ARM, or morbid obesity should be informed of their higher risk of failure. Some patients in these groups do have successful outcomes, and further research may clarify which of these patients can benefit from LNF.

Laparoscopic fundoplication with prosthetic hiatal closure

BACKGROUND

Despite the good results reported after laparoscopic fundoplication, failure is still a major problem. Hiatal disruption is one of the common patterns of anatomical failure. The aim of this study was to compare the results of suture repair of diaphragmatic crura with routine polypropylene mesh reinforcement in addition to suture repair.

METHODS

A total of 551 patients who underwent laparoscopic fundoplication for gastroesophageal reflux disease between March 1998 and July 2004 were included into the study. Crural closure had been performed with simple primary suture repair alone between March 1998 and July 2002 (n = 335, group I), and mesh reinforcement of the hiatal repair was performed routinely thereafter (n = 176, group II). These groups were evaluated prospectively.

RESULTS

We observed a significantly lower rate of recurrence in group II than in group I. After a 2-year follow-up, the rate of anatomic morphologic recurrence was 6.0% in group I and 1.8% in group II. Considering the recurrence rate, there was significant statistical difference. The overall recurrence rate in our series was 4.6%. There was no correlation between the size of the hernia and recurrence. No significant difference was found between groups regarding the rate of postoperative dysphagia. We have not observed any complications related to the use of polypropylene mesh in group II.

CONCLUSION

The results of this study suggest that polypropylene mesh reinforcement increases the success rate for laparoscopic hiatal hernia repair without causing an additional complication burden. We propose routine use of mesh reinforcement in laparascopic antireflux surgery.

Endotherapy and surgery for GERD

Today, there are several modalities to treat gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) (medications, endoscopic therapies, surgery) and such therapies can be used either singly, or in tandem, or in combination with the others, aiming at "normalization" of the patient's GERD-related quality of life and, if possible, esophageal acid exposure. Several intermediate end points or clinically significant outcomes have not been reached by some therapeutic modalities and no single modality is or can be perfect. Statistically significant improvements in these intermediate end points have been shown in "some" but not all studies. Although healing of esophagitis can be accomplished with either medical or surgical therapy, there is inadequate data with endotherapies, because most patients treated with endotherapies have had prior trials of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and hence healed their esophagitis. Effective prevention of complications, such as esophageal adenocarcinoma, remains challenging for all modalities. Patients who have not normalized their GERD-related quality of life with once or twice daily PPI therapy should undergo functional esophageal evaluation with pH testing and esophageal motility study and they should be evaluated by both an endoscopist and a surgeon. The decision on how to proceed should be made on the basis of the criteria for endotherapy and surgery, availability of local endoscopic and surgical expertise and patients' preference. Such multimodality therapy model is in many ways similar to the long-term management of coronary artery disease where pharmacotherapy, angioplasty, and bypass surgery are frequently used in tandem or in combination. Multimodality therapy aiming at normalization of GERD-related quality of life is an option today, and should be available to all patients in need of therapy. The target population for GERD endotherapy currently consists of PPI-dependent GERD patients, who have a small (<2-cm-long) or no sliding hiatal hernia, and without severe esophagitis or Barrett esophagus. Thus far, only Stretta and the NDO plicator have been studied in sham-controlled trials. Registries of complications suggest that these techniques are relatively safe, but serious morbidity, including rare mortality have been reported (for a continuous update on complications related to endoscopic therapies see: http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/maude.html). All can be performed on an outpatient basis, under intravenous sedation and local pharyngeal anesthesia. Future comparative studies with predetermined clinically significant end points, validated outcome measures, prolonged follow-up, and complete complication registries will eventually determine the precise role of endoscopic procedures for the patients with GERD.

Seven-year follow-up of a randomized clinical trial comparing proton-pump inhibition with surgical therapy for reflux oesophagitis

BACKGROUND

This randomized clinical trial compared long-term outcome after antireflux surgery with acid inhibition therapy in the treatment of chronic gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD).

METHODS

Patients with chronic GORD and oesophagitis verified at endoscopy were allocated to treatment with omeprazole (154 patients) or antireflux surgery (144). After 7 years of follow-up, 119 patients in the omeprazole arm and 99 who had antireflux surgery were available for evaluation. The primary outcome variable was the cumulative proportion of patients in whom treatment failed. Secondary objectives were evaluation of the treatment failure rate after dose adjustment of omeprazole, safety, and the frequency and severity of post-fundoplication complaints.

RESULTS

The proportion of patients in whom treatment did not fail during the 7 years was significantly higher in the surgical than in the medical group (66.7 versus 46.7 per cent respectively; P=0.002). A smaller difference remained after dose adjustment in the omeprazole group (P=0.045). More patients in the surgical group complained of symptoms such as dysphagia, inability to belch or vomit, and rectal flatulence. These complaints were fairly stable throughout the study interval. The mean daily dose of omeprazole was 22.8, 24.1, 24.3 and 24.3 mg at 1, 3, 5 and 7 years respectively.

CONCLUSION

Chronic GORD can be treated effectively by either antireflux surgery or omeprazole therapy. After 7 years, surgery was more effective in controlling overall disease symptoms, but specific post-fundoplication complaints remained a problem. There appeared to be no dose escalation of omeprazole with time.

A randomized controlled trial of laparoscopic nissen fundoplication versus proton pump inhibitors for treatment of patients with chronic gastroesophageal reflux disease: One-year follow-up

A randomized controlled trial conducted in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease compared optimized medical therapy using proton pump inhibitor (n = 52) with laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication (n = 52). Patients were monitored for 1 year. The primary end point was frequency of gastroesophageal reflux dis-ease symptoms. Surgical patients had improved symptoms, pH control, and overall quality of life health index after surgery at 1 year compared with the medical group. The overall gastroesophageal reflux disease symptom score at 1 year was unchanged in the medical patients, but improved in the surgical patients. Fourteen patients in the medical arm experienced symptom relapse requiring titration of the proton pump inhibitor dose, but 6 had satisfactory symptom remission. No surgical patients required additional treatment for symptom control. Patients controlled on long-term proton pump inhibitor therapy for chronic gastroesophageal reflux disease are excellent surgical candidates and should experience improved symptom control after surgery at 1 year.

Severely disordered esophageal peristalsis is not a contraindication to laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication

BACKGROUND

Laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication (LNF) is the preferred operation for the control of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). The use of a full fundoplication for patients with esophageal dysmotility is controversial. Although LNF is known to be superior to a partial wrap for patients with weak peristalsis, its efficacy for patients with severe dysmotility is unknown. We hypothesized that LNF is also acceptable for patients with severe esophageal dysmotility.

METHODS

A multicenter retrospective review of consecutive patients with severe esophageal dysmotility who underwent an LNF was performed. Severe dysmotility was defined by manometry showing an esophageal amplitude of 30 mmHg or less and/or 70% or more nonperistaltic esophageal body contractions.

RESULTS

In this study, 48 patients with severe esophageal dysmotility underwent LNF. All the patients presented with symptoms of GERD, and 19 (39%) had preoperative dysphagia. A total of 10 patients had impaired esophageal body contractions, whereas 32 patients had an abnormal esophageal amplitude, and 6 patients had both. The average abnormal esophageal amplitude was 24.9 +/- 5.2 mmHg (range, 6.0-30 mmHg). The mean percentage of nonperistaltic esophageal body contractions was 79.4% +/- 8.3% (range, 70-100%). There were no intraoperative complications and no conversions. Postoperatively, early dysphagia occurred in 35 patients (73%). Five patients were treated with esophageal dilation, which was successful in three cases. One patient required a reoperative fundoplication. Overall, persistent dysphagia was found in two patients (4.2%), including one patient with severe preoperative dysphagia, which improved postoperatively. Abnormal peristalsis and/or distal amplitude improved postoperatively in 12 (80%) of retested patients. There were no cases of Barrett's progression to dysplasia or carcinoma. During an average follow-up period of 25.4 months (range, 1-46 months), eight patients (16%) were receiving antireflux medications, with six of these showing normal esophageal pH study results.

CONCLUSION

The LNF procedure provides low rates of reflux recurrence with little long-term postoperative dysphagia experienced by patients with severely disordered esophageal peristalsis. Effective fundoplication improved esophageal motility for most of the patients. A 360 degrees fundoplication should not be contraindicated for patients with severe esophageal dysmotility.

Long-term evaluation of patient satisfaction and reflux symptoms after laparoscopic fundoplication with Collis gastroplasty

BACKGROUND

Esophageal shortening is a complication of advanced gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). For patients with short esophagus, Collis gastroplasty combined with fundoplication provides excellent symptomatic relief from GERD disease. The literature lacks studies comparing satisfaction and reflux symptoms between patients who underwent Nissen fundoplication with Collis gastroplasty and those who had primary fundoplication alone. This study aimed to assess long-term satisfaction and GERD-related quality of life after laparoscopic Collis-Nissen fundoplication, and to compare them with those for Nissen fundoplication alone.

METHODS

A nested case-control study was conducted. In this study, 14 cases of laparoscopic Collis-Nissen fundoplications were matched for age, gender, and length of the follow-up period to a cohort of 120 control subjects who underwent laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication. All the patients were mailed a follow-up survey which included a Short Form-12 (SF-12) health status (quality-of-life) questionnaire (a validated quality-of-life instrument), a Quality of Life in Reflux and Dyspepsia (QOLRAD) questionnaire (a GERD-specific quality-of-life instrument), and queries regarding long-term satisfaction and medication use.

RESULTS

Both groups showed a significant postoperative increase in QOLRAD mean scores (p = 0.01). However, the difference in the delta (postoperative-preoperative) score between the two groups was not significant (Fig. 1). There were no differences in mental (MCS) or physical (PCS) SF-12 scores between the two groups. The rate of satisfaction with the surgery was similar in the Nissen-Collis fundoplication (87.5%) and Nissen fundoplication (87%) groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Collis gastroplasty combined with Nissen fundoplication is an effective procedure for patients with a shortened esophagus diagnosed intraoperatively during antireflux surgery. Patient satisfaction, postoperative quality of life, and QOLRAD score improvement after this procedure are comparable with those observed in patients treated with Nissen fundoplication alone.

Long-term control of gastroesophageal reflux disease symptoms after laparoscopic Nissen-Rosetti fundoplication

Laparoscopic fundoplication is the gold standard surgical treatment for gastroesophageal reflux disease, although some patients develop recurrence or collateral symptoms related to surgery. The aims of this study were to describe the long-term symptoms control in patients undergoing laparoscopic fundoplication, to analyze the patterns of failure and to correlate postoperative symptoms with anatomic and physiologic findings. Extensive preoperative and postoperative work-up including symptom questionnaire, barium meal, endoscopy, manometry, and 24-hour pH-metry were performed in 130 consecutive patients undergoing laparoscopic fundoplication. Mean follow-up was 52 months. After laparoscopic fundoplication, 117 patients (90%) were asymptomatic with Visick grade I and II symptoms reported by 124 patients (95%). On evaluation, 119 (92%) patients were satisfied and willing to repeat surgery. Two failure patterns, anatomic abnormalities (wrap migration into the chest or down onto the stomach with or without repair disruption) and functional (incompetence of antireflux mechanism), were reported in 17 patients. Reflux can be controlled in up to 90% of patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease with relatively few complications and a high degree of patient satisfaction. The most common cause of recurrent symptoms is an anatomic failure of the fundoplication.

[Laparoscopic fundoplication: current data]

Laparoscopic fundoplication is as effective as its open counterpart, allowing reduced morbidity, shorter hospital stay and recovery, lower consumption of analgesics, and very low mortality, with no significant differences in early functional outcome. Rate of early recurrence is similar after partial and total fundoplication, but but the partial approach has a significantly reduced rate of reoperation for failure, mainly due to postoperative dysphagia. Long-term follow-up is required to evaluate dysphagia and quality-of-life.

Short-term cost effectiveness and long-term cost analysis comparing laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication with proton-pump inhibitor maintenance for gastro-oesophageal reflux disease

BACKGROUND

This study examined the short-term cost-effectiveness and long-term cost of laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication (LNF) versus maintenance proton-pump inhibitor (PPI) medication for severe gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) based on a randomized clinical trial.

METHODS

Costs and outcomes for 12 months were obtained from the first 100 patients in the trial. Detailed costing was performed using resource use data from hospital records and general practitioners' notes. Short-term incremental cost-effectiveness ratios, calculated as the cost difference divided by the effectiveness difference between LNF and PPI therapy, were analysed using net benefit and bootstrap approaches. Long-term cost was examined using sensitivity analyses incorporating published data from other large series.

RESULTS

The incremental cost of LNF compared with PPI therapy per additional patient returned to a physiologically normal acid score (less than 13.9) at 3 months was pound5515 (95 per cent confidence interval (c.i.) pound3655 to pound13 400) and the incremental cost per point improvement in combined Gastro-Intestinal and Psychological Well-being score at 12 months was pound293 (90 per cent c.i. pound149 to pound5250). On average, LNF cost pound2247 (95 per cent c.i. pound2020 to pound2473) more than PPI therapy in year 1 and broke even in year 8. Break-even was highly sensitive to hospital unit costs but less sensitive to PPI ingestion rate after LNF, LNF reoperation rate, PPI relapse rate, future PPI price, PPI dose escalation and discount rate.

CONCLUSION

From a National Health Service perspective, LNF may be cost-saving after 8 years compared with maintenance PPI therapy for the treatment of GORD.