Pancreatic enzymatic mediastinitis followed by total gastrectomy with splenectomy: report of two cases

BACKGROUND: Acute mediastinitis is a rare disease that rapidly progresses with a high mortality rate. Its most common cause is direct injury of the mediastinum, including iatrogenic causes such as cardiac surgery or upper endoscopy. Enzymatic mediastinitis is a rare complication of a pancreatic fistula caused by the inflammatory digestion of the parietal peritoneum spreading to the mediastinum. Here, we present two cases of enzymatic mediastinitis caused by total gastrectomy with splenectomy. One of them was successfully treated and cured after early diagnosis and transabdominal drainage. CASE PRESENTATION: Case 1 was that of a 60-year-old man (body mass index [BMI] 27) with a medical history of diabetes and hypertension who was diagnosed with advanced gastric cancer in the upper body of the stomach. A total gastrectomy with splenectomy was performed. The patient experienced acute respiratory failure 24 h after surgery. Pulmonary embolism was suspected, so a computed tomography (CT) scan was performed; however, no relevant causes were found. Although he was immediately intubated and treated with catecholamine, he died in the intensive care unit (ICU) 40 h after surgery. Post-mortem findings revealed retroperitonitis caused by a pancreatic fistula spreading towards the mediastinum, causing severe mediastinitis; a review of the CT scan revealed pneumomediastinum. We concluded that the cause of death was enzymatic mediastinitis due to post-gastrectomy pancreatic fistula. Case 2 involved a 61-year-old man (BMI 25) with a medical history of appendicitis who was diagnosed with advanced gastric cancer at the gastric angle between the lesser curvature and the pylorus, spreading to the upper body of the stomach. A total gastrectomy with splenectomy was also performed. The patient had a high fever 3 days after the surgery, and a CT scan revealed pneumomediastinum, indicating mediastinitis. As the inflammation was below the bronchial bifurcation, we chose a transabdominal approach for drainage. The patient was successfully treated and discharged. CONCLUSION: Acute mediastinitis caused by gastrectomy is rare. The acknowledgment of abdominal surgery as a cause of mediastinitis is important. In treating mediastinitis caused by abdominal surgery, transabdominal drainage may be a minimally invasive yet effective method if the inflammation is mainly located below the bifurcation of the trachea.