Association of the rate of bilirubin decrease with major morbidity in patients undergoing preoperative biliary drainage before pancreaticoduodenectomy

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between the rate of bilirubin decrease following preoperative biliary drainage before pancreaticoduodenectomy and postoperative morbidity. METHODS: Records of patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy at the Department of Surgery in Ramathibodi Hospital between January 2008 and December 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. The patients were classified into either an adequate or inadequate drainage rate groups according to the bilirubin decrease rate. Major morbidity was defined as higher than grade II in the Clavien-Dindo classification. Risk factors for major morbidity were analyzed by logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: In total, 166 patients were included in the study. Major morbidity was observed in 36 patients (21.6%). Adequate biliary drainage rate was observed in 39 patients (23.4%). Patients who had major morbidity were less likely to have come from the adequate biliary drainage rate group than the inadequate group (38.9% vs. 61.1%). However, through multivariate logistic analysis, only body mass index, operative time, and pancreatic duct diameter were independent factors associated with major morbidity, whereas the bilirubin decrease rate was not. CONCLUSIONS: Bilirubin decrease rate following preoperative biliary drainage has no significant association with major postoperative morbidity after pancreaticoduodenectomy.