title: Experience with 21 pancreaticoduodenectomies.
abstract: Twenty-one patients underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy-19 for neoplasia and two for benign disease (operative mortality, 9.5%). Anastomotic leakage occurred in three patients (14.3%); in two it was biliary and in one it was pancreatic. Vagotomy was not employed and there were no instances of stomal ulceration. Four patients (21%) operated on for malignant neoplasm are free of disease from five to ten years since surgery, and two more are in good health for less than five years (total, 31.6%). The presence of an involved regional lymph node is not a contraindication to curative or palliative resection in either carcinoma of the ampulla of Vater or carcinoma of the pancreas.
mesh_terms: D001646:Bile; D001650:Bile Duct Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D002761:Cholangitis / Q000601:surgery*; D004379:Duodenal Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D004386:Duodenum / Q000601:surgery*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010180:Pancreatectomy / Q000401:mortality; D010189:Pancreatic Juice; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000601:surgery*; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012008:Recurrence; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D013529:Surgical Wound Dehiscence