Hepatic artery reconstruction following iatrogenic injury during laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy: Minimal access surgery is new horizon

Abstract

Although minimally invasive surgery has evolved in every field of surgery, its use in vascular surgery is limited to major vessel diseases only. A 23-year-old female presented with a cystic lesion in the distal body and the tail of the pancreas. Triphasic computed tomography (CT) abdomen revealed a 4.5 cm × 3.2 cm-sized mass with calcifications. A diagnosis of the mucinous cystic neoplasm in the distal body and the tail of the pancreas was made and the patient was planned for laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy. During the procedure, hepatic artery was accidentally injured due to its anomalous course. The artery was then reconstructed laparoscopically using left gastric artery as conduit. The time duration of the procedure was 45 min and blood loss was approximately 75 mL. The patient recovered well and the postoperative Doppler study revealed normal blood flow. Medium-vessel surgery through laparoscopic approach is feasible and safe in select cases, while availing benefits of laparoscopy.

Keywords

• Hepatic artery
• iatrogenic injury
• left gastric artery
• medium-sized vessel
• minimally invasive surgery
• vascular reconstruction