title: Necrotizing acute pancreatitis current status - emerging new strategies in surgical management.
abstract: Despite that pancreatic necrosis complicates only 15 % of cases of acute pancreatitis (AP), it is associated with high morbidity and considerable mortality. In an attempt to improve prognosis, many surgical strategies have been described during the last few decades. Currently, necrosectomy remains the cornerstone in the surgical treatment of infected pancreatic necrosis and in selected cases of sterile necrotizing pancreatitis. Following necrosectomy, continuous closed lavage is recommended by many authors, while closed abdominal packing /drainage and repeated planned necrosectomies- commonly using the zipper technique-are also acceptable alternative strategies. Open abdomen (laparostomy) is rarely indicated in carefully selected cases (typically in abdominal compartment syndrome associated with necrotizing AP). During the last decade, minimally invasive techniques (including percutaneous drainage, retroperitoneal endoscopic approach, transgastric endoscopic approach etc) have been extensively studied by some groups not only in the management of pancreatic abscesses and / or pseudocysts, but also as primary methods of treatment of necrotizing AP. Results have been impressive, but experience currently is limited to only a few centers around the world.
authors.affiliation: 4th Department of Surgery, Athens University, Medical School, Attikon University Hospital, Athens, Greece. georgesakorafas@yahoo.com
authors.forename: George H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Sakorafas
authors.forename: Dimitrios
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sampanis
authors.forename: Christos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lappas
authors.forename: Panayiotis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kokoropoulos
authors.forename: Aikaterini
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mastoraki
authors.forename: Vassilios
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Smyrniotis
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D019283:Pancreatitis, Acute Necrotizing / Q000601:surgery*