Choledochal malformations: global research, scientific advances and key controversies

Intrahepatic ductoplasty effectively corrects the ductal dilatation in Todani type IV-A choledochal cyst in children

Primary ductal stricture and intrahepatic duct dilatation are characteristic features in Todani type IV-A choledochal cysts (CDC) and necessitate thorough evaluation and management during surgical treatment. This study aimed to present our experience with ductoplasties for type IV-A CDCs with primary ductal strictures. Between June 2015 and June 2022, 54 patients were reviewed. Primary ductal strictures were identified, and ductoplasties were performed individually. The demographic characteristics, imaging examinations, postoperative outcomes, and complications were evaluated. Among enrolled patients, 36 (66.66%) had strictures at the exit of the common hepatic duct (CHD), 13 (24.07%) had strictures at the exit of the left hepatic duct (LHD) and/or right hepatic duct (RHD), 4 (7.41%) had strictures at the exit of the CHD, with LHD and/or RHD, and 1 (1.85%) patient had strictures at the level 2 or more intrahepatic biliary duct. The median follow-up period was 5.20 years. The dilated intrahepatic ducts returning to a normal size occurred in 52 (96.30%) patients. Two (3.70%) patients experienced anastomosis leakage and required surgical repair 3 ~ 5 days later. Liver function normalized within 1 year postoperatively. It is safe and effective to perform ductoplasties for primary ductal strictures in Todani type IV-A CDCs.

Surgical aspects of choledochal cyst in children and adults: an experience of 106 cases

PURPOSE

To describe clinical features of choledochal cyst (CC) patients in terms of demographic data, clinical presentation, investigations, treatment, and outcomes among children and adults.

METHODS

The medical records of patients undergoing choledochal cyst (CC) surgery from 2002 to 2021 at a university hospital were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were divided into two groups: children (< 15 years) and adults (≥ 15 years). Descriptive statistics were used.

RESULTS

There were 106 cases of CC (Female/male = 88/18, children/adult = 53/53). Abdominal pain was the predominant presenting symptom, followed by jaundice in both groups. Adults were significantly more prone to present with abdominal pain compared to children (86.8% vs. 52.8%; p < 0.001), while children were more likely to experience acholic stool than adults (22.6% vs. 3.8%; p = 0.004). Ultrasound was the preferred investigation screening modality (75.5%). Most patients were presented with type I CC (71.7%). Laparoscopic-assisted approach was performed in 8.5%. CC excision with roux-en-y hepatico-jejunostomy was the main procedure (88.7%). Adults had a higher incidence of post-op complications, including stones, anastomosis stricture, abdominal collection, and cholangitis. Adults were significantly more likely to require intervention after surgery, compared to children (26.4% vs. 5.7%; p = 0.04).

CONCLUSIONS

Ultrasound was the most common screening tool for diagnosis. Postoperatively, adults with CC experience more serious post-op complications compared to children. This could be attributed to long-standing cystic inflammation. Therefore, prompt definitive surgery is recommended for CC patients.

Lost in transition? Loss of follow-up and quality of life in adults after resection of choledochal malformation in childhood

Objectives

Choledochal malformation (CM) is a rare disease that can lead to malignancy and potential long-term sequelae despite surgical resection. There is no long-term follow-up data on patients after CM resection in Germany. We aimed to determine the long-term outcome of our patients with a duration of follow-up >10 years and focused on long-term sequelae and health-related quality of life (HRQOL).

Methods

All patients who had undergone CM-resection in our department from 01/1978 to 06/2009 were contacted. Patients were interviewed about postoperative complications and their present medical attendance. HRQOL was determined using Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory 4.0 (PedsQL), version for adults. The PedsQL scales the HRQOL from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating a better HRQOL. Scores were compared to those published for a healthy population.

Results

Out of 56 patients who were contacted, 23 (41 %) participated. The median age at time of surgery was 3.1 years (6 days-16.1 years) and at time of the survey 24.3 years (11.1-53.8 years). Eighteen patients (78 %) had ceased their gastroenterologic follow-up at a median time of 4.3 years after surgery. Five (22 %) were still in gastroenterologic follow-up, two of these had an uneventful clinical course, and three (13 %) had ongoing complications attributed to the CM. One of these had undergone hemihepatectomy 34 years postoperatively due to bile duct stenosis, one had undergone removal of bile duct stones 14 years postoperatively, and one suffered from portal vein thrombosis with esophageal and jejunal varices. There was no mortality in our series. Median total HRQOL score was 89. There was no significant difference in the median total health, physical health, and psychosocial health scores of our patients in comparison to the healthy population.

Conclusions

We confirmed that the majority of patients after CM resection are lost to follow-up. Those who answered our questionnaire showed a good HRQOL. Given the high rate of severe long-term complications and the life-long risk of malignancy, we recommend a transition program for all patients.

Preliminary exploration of animal models of congenital choledochal cysts

BACKGROUND

Various animal models have been used to explore the pathogenesis of choledochal cysts (CCs), but with little convincing results. Current surgical techniques can achieve satisfactory outcomes for treatment of CCs. Consequently, recent studies have focused more on clinical issues rather than basic research. Therefore, we need appropriate animal models to further basic research.

AIM

To establish an appropriate animal model that may contribute to the investigation of the pathogenesis of CCs.

METHODS

Eighty-four specific pathogen-free female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly allocated to a surgical group, sham surgical group, or control group. A rat model of CC was established by partial ligation of the bile duct. The reliability of the model was confirmed by measurements of serum biochemical indices, morphology of common bile ducts of the rats as well as molecular biology experiments in rat and human tissues.

RESULTS

Dilation classified as mild (diameter, ≥ 1 mm to < 3 mm), moderate (≥ 3 mm to < 10 mm), and severe (≥ 10 mm) was observed in 17, 17, and 2 rats in the surgical group, respectively, while no dilation was observed in the control and sham surgical groups. Serum levels of alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total bilirubin, direct bilirubin, and total bile acids were significantly elevated in the surgical group as compared to the control group 7 d after surgery, while direct bilirubin, total bilirubin, and gamma-glutamyltransferase were further increased 14 d after surgery. Most of the biochemical indices gradually decreased to normal ranges 28 d after surgery. The protein expression trend of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 in rat model was consistent with the human CC tissues.

CONCLUSION

The model of partial ligation of the bile duct of juvenile rats could morphologically simulate the cystic or fusiform CC, which may contribute to investigating the pathogenesis of CC.

Risk factors analysis for clinical symptoms of prenatally diagnosed choledochal cysts: a retrospective study

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to screen the impact factors for clinical symptoms of prenatally diagnosed choledochal cysts (CDCs), to warn about the occurrence of clinical symptoms and the timing of surgery.

METHODS

Medical records of patients with prenatally diagnosed CDCs admitted to our hospital from April 2013 to April 2018 were retrospectively reviewed. Fetal hilar or abdominal cysts were found by prenatal ultrasonogram. All patients underwent laparoscopic cyst excision and hepaticojejunostomy in our center. Univariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression analysis were performed to screen the factors related to clinical symptoms intimately.

RESULTS

Two hundred eighteen cases were included. One hundred thirty-four patients (134/218, 61.5%) presented clinical symptoms before surgery. The results of univariate analysis showed that patients with clinical symptoms had earlier time of prenatal diagnosis (P = 0.002), higher values of GGT, TBIL, DBIL (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, P < 0.001, respectively) and larger maximum diameter of cyst before surgery (P = 0.012). Multivariate logistic regression analysis suggested that the time of prenatal diagnosis (P = 0.001, OR = 0.898, 95% CI: 0.845 ~ 0.955) and the GGT value within one week of life (P = 0.028, OR = 1.002, 95% CI: 1.000 ~ 1.003) were independent influencing factors for symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS

For children with prenatally diagnosed CDCs, approximately 2/3 patients presented noticeable clinical symptoms before surgery. The time of prenatal diagnosis and the GGT value within 1 week of life were independent impact factors for the occurrence of clinical symptoms.

Prenatal diagnosis at different gestational times and clinical features of choledochal cysts: a single tertiary center report

PURPOSE

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of prenatal diagnosis at different gestational times on the clinical features of patients with choledochal cysts (CDCs).

METHODS

Medical records of patients with prenatally diagnosed CDCs admitted to our hospital (April 2013-April 2018) were retrospectively reviewed. The clinical characteristics and pathological CDC features were analyzed.

RESULTS

Two hundred eighteen cases were included. Patients were divided into two groups. Group 1 and group 2 had a prenatal diagnosis at ≤ 27 weeks of gestation (second trimester of gestation, n = 157) and > 27 weeks (third trimester of gestation, n = 61), respectively. The incidence of jaundice and the TBIL, IBIL and GGT levels were higher in Group 1 (P = 0.021, P = 0.029, P = 0.042, P = 0.007, respectively). The maximum cyst diameter at the time of surgery was larger in Group 1 (P = 0.015). An association study showed that the time of prenatal diagnosis was negatively correlated with the maximum cyst diameter both postnatally (r = - 0.223, P = 0.001) and at the time of surgery (r = - 0.268, P < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

Unlike patients diagnosed at a late prenatal age, patients diagnosed at an early prenatal age tend to present clinical symptoms (jaundice, manifested as high indirect bilirubin), hepatic function damage, and large cysts at the time of surgery.

A Bibliometric Study of the Pediatric Inguinal Hernia Publication Landscape from the Web of Science Database

Background

The number of times a research work gets cited by another article is one of the article-level metrics for assessing the quality of a research publication. Citation analysis by bibliometric review has been performed in several disciplines. The current study was aimed to systematically review the literature available on pediatric inguinal hernia since 1960 in terms of the 25 most cited articles in this field and analyze the bibliometric variables author and organizational collaborative patterns.

Methods

Thomson Reuters Web of Science citation indexing database and research platform were used to retrieve the most cited articles in pediatric inguinal hernia (PIH) using appropriate search strings. The characteristics (name of authors, the total number of authors, the title of publication, journal of publication, year of publication, etc.) of the 25 top-cited articles were recorded. Specific bibliographical parameters were derived and analyzed. Visualization maps were generated using VOSviewer software.

Results

The analysis revealed that the Journal of Pediatric Surgery was leading the choice of journal for publication. While most of the publications originated from the United States of America, Schier was the most influential author. Five of the eight top-productive authors are also the most connected.

Conclusion

Articles on laparoscopic repair in PIH have been heavily cited. Following the United States of America, Turkey stands out as the topmost productive country in PIH. The publications on PIH show that "collaboration" is the bridging force between productivity and influence on the academic community.

Publication landscape of Posterior urethral valve- A scientometric study

To assess the global research landscape in the field of Posterior urethral valve (PUV), a scientometric study was conducted to determine the quantity and quality of the research output and get insight into the key research areas and pattern of collaboration in the research community.

METHODS

Primary data was acquired from the Scopus® database. Various parameters like the total research productivity, citations, citations per publication, citations per year, citations per publication per year, the scientific output of countries, institutions, authors, and journals were calculated. Key research areas were inferred by examining the top-cited articles (citations >150). Collaborative maps were generated by calculating co-authorship links amongst countries and authors using VOSviewer software.

RESULTS

One thousand seven hundred fourteen results were found published from 1913 to 2019, receiving a total of 27,253 citations, authored by 5138 authors from 125 countries. The top three countries were the United States of America (USA), India, and the United Kingdom (UK). The leading institutes were the Children's Hospital Boston, USA (n = 48), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS, Delhi), India (n = 38), and Great Ormond Street Hospital, UK (n- = 27). The journals which published the most articles on PUV were the Journal of Urology (n = 278), Journal of Pediatric Urology (n = 121), followed by Urology (n = 86). Leading authors were Glassberg, K. L and Bajpai M (n = 17, each), Canning DA & Kajbafzadeh, AM (n = 16, each), followed by Peters CA with 14 manuscripts. The top-cited documents (n = 10) received 2104 citations and were published between 1986 and 2010. The key areas of interest found were "long-term outcomes" (n = 4) and "fetal surgery" (n = 2). The most productive countries were also the most collaborative countries (the USA and UK).

CONCLUSION

In the research landscape of PUV, the USA, Children's Hospital Boston, and Glassberg, K. L, along with Bajpai, M were the top contributors in terms of the country, organization, and authors, respectively. The "Journal of Urology" and "Pediatric Nephrology" stands out in terms of bibliometric parameters considered. The hotspot topics based on the number of citations received were "long-term outcomes" and "fetal surgery" in PUV. The most productive countries were also the most collaborative countries (the USA and UK).

Choledochal cyst theories going pear-shaped? Evolution of choledochal cyst during intrauterine life in a case evaluated using magnetic resonance imaging and postnatal outcomes

A choledochal cyst is a rare abdominal malformation and was first reported almost three centuries before. There are few theories describing the evolution of the cyst through the lifespan of affected patients until diagnosis and prompt treatment; however, there is no image documentation of the evolution of the malformation. In this report, we demonstrate the evolution of a type I choledochal cyst in a fetus from the 24th to the 37th week of gestation using magnetic resonance imaging and perinatal outcomes with correlation with pathophysiological mechanisms.

Molecular Characteristics of Choledochal Cysts in Children: Transcriptome Sequencing

A choledochal cyst (CC) is a common congenital biliary disease in children, yet the underlying molecular bases for the cystic and fusiform clinical subtypes are unknown. RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) has been performed on 22 high-quality CC samples, including 12 cystic CC and 10 fusiform CC samples, to search for molecular features. Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was performed to identify key modules associated with clinical subtypes. Bioinformatic analyses were conducted to elucidate potential mechanisms. Then, we constructed protein–protein interaction (PPI) networks to identify candidate hub genes related to CC. Finally, we used the support vector machine (SVM) to eliminate redundant features and screen out the hub genes. The selected gene expression was determined in CC patients through quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A total of 6,463 genes were found to be aberrantly expressed between cystic CC and fusiform CC. Twelve co-expression modules that correlated with clinical subtypes of CC were identified and assigned representative colors. Among the 12 modules, the blue module was considered the key module. Two functionally distinct sets of dysregulated genes have been identified in two major subtypes, metabolism-related genes in cystic CC and immune-related genes in fusiform CC. A total of 20 candidate hub genes that were correlated with clinical subtypes were found in the blue module. In addition, we found ERBB2 and WNT11 that have not been studied in CC and verified their differential expression in CC through quantitative real-time PCR experiments. For the first time, we have described the transcriptome characteristics of CC. These results suggest that cystic CC and fusiform CC have different molecular mechanisms. The bi-omics-identified novel candidate genes and pathways might be helpful for personalized treatment and are of great clinical significance for CC.

Antenatally detected liver and biliary pathology

Liver and biliary pathology in the neonate are rare and include a broad range of structural, neoplastic, infectious, genetic, and metabolic diseases. While most conditions present postnatally, antenatal detection is increasing given recent advances in antenatal imaging capabilities. In certain structural or obstructive liver diseases, antenatal detection now proves essential to help guide treatment and prevent morbidity. We review the epidemiology, pathophysiology, common antenatal diagnostic findings, and recommendations for surgical liver and biliary pathology in the neonate.

Biliary Reconstruction by Isolated Jejunal Interposition Loop: Our Experience after Excision of Choledochal Cyst

BACKGROUND

Choledochal cyst is a fairly common hepatobiliary condition in pediatric surgical practice. For the most common type (type I), it is well established that the total excision of the cyst with an wide biliary-enteric anastomosis is key for long-term good result. Multiple options remain for biliary-enteric reconstruction after excision. Jejunal interposition loop reconstruction is thought to be the most physiologic.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We have retrospectively reviewed the data of patients of type I choledochal cysts which were operated between January 2010 and September 2018 and undergone jejunal interposition loop reconstruction. Clinical presentation, investigations, operative procedure morbidity and complications were reviewed.

RESULTS

There were 33 patients, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:3 and a mean age of 4.63 years (mean ± standard deviation [SD] = 4.63 ± 2.98 years). The follow-up period ranged from 3 to 81 months (mean ± SD = 36.30 ± 19.24 months). There was no stricture or cholangitis. Reoperation required in one due to leak at biliary-enteric anastomosis leading to biliary peritonitis. One each had pancreatitis and prolonged ileus. Two bile leaks stopped spontaneously. Operative time and postoperative hospital stay were 228.78 ± 40.43 min (mean ± SD) and 8.96 ± 3.63 days (mean ± SD), respectively.

CONCLUSION

Jejunal interposition loop reconstruction is safe and reproducible with acceptable morbidity. However, if this procedure is abandoned, the long-term benefits may remain ever elusive.