NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - In patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), similar outcomes were achieved with posterior partial (PF) or total fundoplication (TF) at the 15-year follow-up to a randomized trial.
"The Nissen fundoplication, which includes a 360 degree wrap around the distal esophagus, has shown excellent results regarding reflux control," Dr. Apostolos Analatos and Dr. Anders Thorell, both of the Karolinska Institutet, in Stockholm, Sweden, told Reuters Health by email. "However, some concern has been raised regarding the side effects that might occur after the procedure."
"Recently," they said, "our team reported 5-year outcomes of a randomized trial showing equally good reflux control with the two procedures, but slightly increased dysphagia for solids in the Nissen group during the first two years after the surgery." (https://bit.ly/3KclwM8)
"The durability of the functional outcomes of these procedures is of great concern, and we therefore performed this study with more than 15 years of follow up," they said.
"Our study did not have sufficient power to perform any sub-analyses of any particular groups of patients," they noted. "It could, however, be speculated that patients with mild esophageal dysmotility might benefit more from a partial fundoplication in order to reduce the risk of mechanical problems.
