Open Versus Total Laparoscopic Pancreaticoduodenectomy

Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is a major, complex abdominal surgery that involves removing the pancreatic head together with the common bile duct (CBD) and duodenum. It is usually associated with complications that can severely affect patients' health and lead to mortality. Pancreaticoduodenectomy is mainly indicated for patients with malignant masses in the head of pancreas and the periampullary region and can be the treatment solution for these patients, providing them with a cure or prolonging their survival. Pancreaticoduodenectomy can also be indicated for some pancreatic cystic neoplasms, particularly intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs) that can turn malignant, neuroendocrine tumors, metastatic lesions to the pancreas, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, pancreatitis, and major pancreatic injury. Pancreaticoduodenectomy was not generally accepted until the report introduced by Whipple in 1935 about his successful two-stage PD.. After about five years, Whipple conducted the first anatomic one-stage PD, including an antrectomy and a complete duodenectomy for a pancreatic head tumor. Pancreaticoduodenectomy has been traditionally performed with an open approach. In 1994, Gagner and Pomp described laparoscopic PD (LPD). In their follow-up study, laparoscopic PD was concluded to have a high conversion rate with no advantages over open PD (OPD). Since then, laparoscopic approaches have been growingly reported, with ongoing research aiming to assess if LPD, being a minimally invasive approach, can improve postoperative morbidity. Nevertheless, LPD is still not broadly accepted. This study aimed to determine the advantages and disadvantages of performing total laparoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy compared to the open approach.