An advanced bipolar device helps reduce the rate of postoperative pancreatic fistula in laparoscopic gastrectomy for gastric cancer patients: a propensity score-matched analysis

Background Advanced bipolar devices (ABD; e.g., LigaSure (TM)) have a lower blade temperature than ultrasonically activated devices (USAD; e.g., Harmonic (R) and Sonicision (TM)) during activation, potentially enabling accurate lymph node dissection with less risk of postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) due to pancreatic thermal injury in laparoscopic gastrectomy. Therefore, we compared the efficacy and safety of ABD and USAD in laparoscopic gastrectomy for gastric cancer patients. Methods A retrospective cohort study was conducted on patients who underwent laparoscopic distal gastrectomy (LDG) between August 2008 and September 2020. A total of 371 patients were enrolled, and short-term surgical outcomes, including the incidence of ISGPF grades B and C POPF, were compared between ABD and USAD. The risk factors for POPF in LDG were investigated by univariate and multivariate analyses. Results A propensity score-matching algorithm was used to select 120 patients for each group. The POPF rate was significantly lower (0.8 vs. 9.2%, p < 0.001), the morbidity rate was lower (13.3 vs. 28.3%, p < 0.001), the length of postoperative hospitalization was shorter (14 vs. 19 days, p < 0.001), and the lymph node retrieval rate was higher (34 vs. 26, p < 0.001) with an ABD than with a USAD. There were no mortalities in either group. A multivariate analysis showed that a USAD was the only independent risk factor with a considerably high odds ratio for the occurrence of POPF (USAD/ABD, odds ratio 8.38, p = 0.0466). Conclusion An ABD may improve the safety of laparoscopic gastrectomy for gastric cancer patients.