Objective To determine the risk factors of anastomotic leakage after elective colectomy in elderly patients with colon cancer, and to establish a model for predicting the risk of postoperative anastomotic leakage based on these factors. Methods The clinical data of 122 over 65 years old elderly patients who underwent colon cancer surgery in the First Hospital of Lanzhou University from January 2018 to December 2021 were analyzed retrospectively. Single factor analysis and multivariate logistic regression were used to analyze the potential risk factors for anastomotic leakage. A nomogram predictive model was established based on the determined independent risk factors, and the predictive performance of the model was evaluated by the receiver operating characteristic curve. Results Among the 122 patients included in this study, 10 had postoperative anastomotic leakage and 112 had no anastomotic leakage. Single factor analysis results showed that the occurrence of anastomotic leakage was associated with body mass index, smoking, combined diabetes, age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index, intraoperative and postoperative blood transfusion within 2 days, preoperative hemoglobin, preoperative albumin, and preoperative prognostic nutritional index (P＜0.05). The results of multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that smoking [OR=15.529, 95%CI (1.529, 157.690), P=0.020], age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index [OR=1.742, 95%CI (1.024, 2.966), P=0.041], and intraoperative and postoperative blood transfusion within 2 days [OR=82.223, 95%CI (1.265, 5 343.025), P=0.038] were independent risk factors for anastomotic leakage. A nomogram predictive model was established based on three independent risk factors. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the model was 0.897 [95%CI (0.804, 0.990)], and its corrected C-index value was 0.881, indicating that the model had good predictive ability for the risk of anastomotic leakage. Conclusions Smoking, higher age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index, and intraoperative and postoperative blood transfusion within 2 days are important risk factors for anastomotic leak in elderly patients undergoing elective colon cancer resection. This nomogram predictive model based on the combination of the three factors is helpful for surgeons to optimize treatment decisions and postoperative monitoring.
The technique of laparoscopic radical right hemicolectomy is becoming mature, but there are still controversies on some key steps, including the extent of lymph node dissection, the scope of bowel resection, the choice of surgical access and anastomosis. The new function-preserving surgery and natural-orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) have further enhanced the minimally invasive nature of surgery. The author’s have reviewed the latest domestic and international literature, combined with the experience of the author’s center, and elaborated on the current focus issues of laparoscopic radical surgery for right-sided colon cancer.