Laparoscopic management of duodenal ulcer perforation: is it advantageous?

BACKGROUND Surgery is the mainstay of treatment of patients with peptic duodenal perforation. With the advent of minimal access techniques, laparoscopy is being used for the treatment of this condition. METHODS Retrospective analysis of 120 consecutive patients (mean age 44.5 years; 111 men) with duodenal ulcer perforation who had undergone laparoscopic surgery. RESULTS 87 patients had history of tobacco consumption, 12 were chronic NSAID users, 72 had Helicobacter pylori infection and 36 had a co-morbid condition. The mean time to surgery from onset of symptoms was 28.4 hours. The median operating time was 46 minutes. All patients underwent laparoscopic closure of the perforation with Graham's patch omentopexy; 12 patients underwent additional definitive ulcer surgery. The morbidity rate was 7.5%; no patient needed conversion to open surgery or died. The mean postoperative hospital stay was 5.8 days. CONCLUSION Results of laparoscopic management of perforated peptic ulcer are encouraging, with no conversion to open surgery, low morbidity and no mortality.