Washington University BME 401 Group 2

Background:

Pancreatic duodenectomy, commonly known as the Whipple procedure, is a complicated major surgery in which a surgeon removes the head portion of the pancreas, the gallbladder, the duodenum, the pylorus (a portion of the stomach), and the lymph nodes near the pancreas. After removing these parts, the surgeon reconnects the remaining organs by stitching and attaching a small feeder tube to attach the bile duct to the small intestine. Because of the big volume of tissue removal and the technical-challenging nature of the procedure, the Whipple surgery carries high risks of complications. The most common and also the most serious complication is pancreatic leakage: the fluid from the pancreas escapes the intraoperative draining tube and leaks out to the surrounding tissues and blood vessels. If undetected, the leakage leads to auto-erosion of tissues, destruction of blood vessels that induced abscess and blood infection.

The clinical impact of anastomotic leakage from gastrointestinal resection includes higher lengths of patient stay, higher mortality rates, higher readmission rates, increased number of reoperations, and an overall impact on the quality of life on patients. As a result, anastomotic leakage imposes a significant financial burden on patients, caregivers and hospitals as well. Thus, early detection of anastomotic leakage is crucial to reduce the dreaded complications. In order to reduce the high risk of postoperative complications due to anastomosis leakage and to allow physicians to take care of the problem promptly, the team proposes to design a device to detect and monitor real-time anastomotic leakage in pair with the usage of a drainage system that directs the leakage fluid outside patient bodies. In addition to pancreatic duodenectomy, anastomotic leak is a major concern for various surgeries: colorectal surgery, esophagectomy, gastrointestinal surgery, and any types of surgery that involve surgical join.