Published online Nov 14, 2022. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v28.i42.6056
Peer-review started: June 27, 2022
First decision: August 1, 2022
Revised: August 15, 2022
Accepted: October 26, 2022
Article in press: October 26, 2022
Published online: November 14, 2022
Processing time: 136 Days and 7.4 Hours
Chylous ascites (CA) is relatively common postoperative complication in patients undergoing received gastric cancer (GC) surgery that obviously prolongs hospitalization and has a major impacts on subsequent adjuvant treatments.
Drainage tube (DT) clamping has been presented as a potential alternative conservative treatment for GC patients with CA.
This study aimed to explore key factors influencing CA treatment and recommend novel conservative treatment strategies for postoperative CA in GC patients.
Data from patients with CA after GC surgery performed at the Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center between 2006 and 2021 were retrospectively evaluated. Patients were classified into two distinct groups with respect to DT removal time. We further explored the differences in clinical-pathological features of the different DT removal groups.
Fifty-three patients underwent surgery for GC and experienced postoperative CA during the study period. Postoperative hospitalization and DT removal time showed a significant positive association (R2 = 0.979, P < 0.001), while delayed DT removal significantly extended total and postoperative hospitalization times, antibiotic usage duration, and hospitalization cost. In addition, postoperative infection and antibiotic usage were independent factors for delayed DT removal.
Postoperative infection and antibiotic usage were vital independent factors that influenced delayed DT removal in GC patients with CA. Appropriate and lenient standards for DT removal may significantly reduce the duration of hospitalization.
DT clamping could be recommended as an alternative for conservative treatment of postoperative CA.