Dorsal Subcutaneous Fat Thickness as a Risk Factor for Pancreatic Fistula After Gastric Cancer Surgery

Background/Aim: Recently, there have been many reports on the use of preoperative body composition analysis to predict postoperative complications in gastric cancer surgery, most of which used 3D image analysis software for the measurements. This study aimed to evaluate the risk of postoperative infectious complications (PICs), especially pancreatic fistulas, using a simple measurement method incorporating only preoperative computed tomography images. Patients and Methods: A total of 265 patients with gastric cancer underwent laparoscopic or robot-assisted gastrectomy with lymph node dissection at Osaka Metropolitan University Hospital between 2016 and 2020. To simplify the measurement method, we measured the length of each region of the subcutaneous fat area (SFA). Each area included a) umbilical depth, b) thickness of the longest ventral subcutaneous fat, c) thickness of the longest dorsal subcutaneous fat, and d) thickness of the median dorsal subcutaneous fat (MDSF) measurements. Results: PICs occurred in 27 of 265 cases, of which pancreatic fistula was present in 9. SFA for pancreatic fistulas showed high diagnostic accuracy (area under the curve=0.922). Among the subcutaneous fat lengths, the MDSF was the most useful, and the optimal cut-off value was 16 mm. MDSF and non -expert surgeons were found to be independent risk factors for pancreatic fistula. Conclusion: Since the possibility of developing pancreatic fistula is high in cases with MDSF >= 16 mm, careful surgical strategies, such as having a skilled physician, are necessary.