Nutritional Results of Roux-en-Y Pouch Reconstruction After Total Gastrectomy for Gastric Cancer

Objective: The aim of the present study was to describe the nutritional advantage of pouch reconstruction. Summary of background data: Roux-en-Y (RY) pouch reconstruction might improve patients' quality of life compared with RY reconstruction without a pouch after total gastrectomy for gastric cancer. Methods: Clinical records were retrospectively reviewed in 9 and 30 patients with gastric cancer for stages I to III diseases in the pouch and RY groups, respectively, and perioperative and nutritional results were studied. Nutritional results were studied for hemoglobin, serum albumin, total lymphocyte count, and prognostic nutritional index for 5 years postoperatively. Results: Intraoperative blood loss did not differ between 2 groups, and operative time in the pouch group was prolonged compared with the RY group. All parameters we studied for nutritional results did not differ between the pouch and RY groups in patients with stages I to III diseases. When nutritional results were investigated in patients with stage I diseases, the total lymphocyte count at 2 years and prognostic nutritional index at 2 and 3 years postoperatively were greater in the pouch group than RY group, but the increase was not obvious at 4 to 5 years after the operation, and serum albumin and hemoglobin did not differ between 2 groups. Conclusions: These results indicate that the nutritional advantage of pouch reconstruction is very limited after total gastrectomy because the nutritional benefits of pouch reconstruction were observed in 2 of 4 parameters in patients with stage I at 2 and 3 years postoperatively.