title: Whipple's procedure: is it justified?
abstract: Debate continues as to the appropriateness of the Whipple procedure. This retrospective review confirms that it is a worthwhile operation when done by experienced surgeons on suitable patients. Meticulous intra-operative technique must be followed by judicious postoperative care. In this series of 27 Whipple operations major morbidity occurred in 26% of cases. Leakage from the pancreatic anastomosis was infrequent (11%). Various anastomotic techniques were used, depending on the findings at operation. There were no peri-operative deaths and five-year actuarial survival is 63%.
authors.affiliation: Hepatobiliary Service, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Robertson
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Collier
authors.forename: N D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Sherson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010180:Pancreatectomy; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012189:Retrospective Studies