Intra-corporeal hand-sewn esophagojejunostomy is a safe and feasible procedure for totally laparoscopic total gastrectomy: short-term outcomes in 100 consecutive patients

An optimal method for intracorporeal esophagojejunostomy has not yet been standardized. This study sought to introduce intracorporeal hand-sewn end-to-side esophagojejunostomy after totally laparoscopic total gastrectomy. The author conducted a consecutive series of 100 intracorporeal hand-sewn esophagojejunostomies after totally laparoscopic total gastrectomy for upper third gastric cancer from September 2012 to December 2016. All patients were successfully operated on without conversion to open- or laparoscope-assisted surgery. The mean reconstruction time was 45 min, and the time until first flatus was 4 days. The time to start a soft diet was 7 days. The length of postoperative hospital stay was 8 days. The overall postoperative morbidity was 8%, including one anastomotic leak, and the mortality was zero. The median follow-up duration was 13 months; no anastomotic strictures were encountered. Intracorporeal hand-sewn end-to-side esophagojejunostomy after totally laparoscopic total gastrectomy is a safe and feasible procedure. This method can identify negative margins with intraoperative frozen sections before reconstruction and could be a good option for performing intracorporeal esophagojejunostomy with an advanced endoscopic suture technique.