Whipple Surgery

Whipple surgery is a major surgical operation that involves vital body organs such as pancreas, duodenum and some others. It’s technically known as “pancreaticoduodenectomy”.  The operation is usually carried out in order to deal with cancerous tumors that may be at the head of the pancreas.  It’s also performed to deal with other dangerous tumors that appear in the duodenum.

Whipple Surgery has a very long history. It was discovered by the famous Italian doctor namely, Alessandro Codivilla in the year 1898.  Later on in 1909, the surgery was also carried out by the German surgeon namely, Walther Kausch.  However, it was actually in the year 1935 that the surgery took the name Whipple Procedure. This came into being after the great American surgeon Allen Whipple clearly devised a newer version of the surgery in 1935. This great doctor refined all the techniques being used in the surgery. Ever since then, Whipple surgery has continued to be engaged in dealing with all manner of cancerous conditions in the vital body organs concerned.

In the recent times, the Whipple Surgery has modern techniques being used in it. The most common technique involves the removal of the distal segment of the stomach followed by the removal of the first and second parts of the duodenum, the head of the pancreas, the bile duct and then the gall bladder. These vital organs are handled very carefully by a professional doctor who knows a lot about the Whipple surgery techniques.   Tumors existing in the vital organs are usually removed or treated through the surgery process.

The basic concept behind the Whipple Surgery is based on the fact that the duodenum and the head of the pancreas share the same system of blood supply through arteries known as gastroduodenal arteries which usually run through the head of the pancreas down to the duodenum. This is the reason why both the duodenum and the head of the pancreas must be removed during the surgery. If for instance the head of the pancreas   were to be removed alone, blood will ooze into the duodenum thereby resulting to terrible health condition known as tissue necrosis.

In the modern medical approach, the Whipple surgery now consists of   the removal of the distal half of the stomach including the gall bladder and its cystic duct, the common bile duct, the head of the pancreas, the duodenum, the regional lymph nodes and a few other organs.  This is obviously because of the increase cases of unusual cancers and tumors in these vital organs.

Whichever is the case, the Whipple procedure has been very beneficial in dealing with all manner of tumors and cancers in the vital body organs concerned. Many people have been properly treated through the surgery.

In all, if you’re having tumors and cancers in your interior vital organs such as the duodenum and the pancreas, you need to go for the Whipple operation.  Do your best to locate a professional medical doctor who specializes in the field to help you out.

Whipple surgery is a medical procedure most often used for removing the growth of the duodenum or a small portion of the small bowel, fine tube connected to the liver and gallbladder, and the head part of the pancreas. Whipple surgery is used to treat chronic pancreatitis or any form of abnormalities in the pancreatic duct.

Whipple surgery procedure

The whipple surgery consists of removing the part of the bile duct, eliminating the head of the pancreas and the lower part of the stomach. It is a procedure where the NG tube is placed through your nose down to the throat in connection to your stomach. It is used to suck the secretions out of your stomach until your stomach is properly functioning. In this way, the patient is unable to eat or drink. An NG tube is a rubber tube that is red in color with soft texture and is placed as part of the patient’s small bowel. An NG tube is used to feed the patient temporarily.

Another tube is inserted to the body called the Jackson Pratt Drains. It is used to drain the extra fluid that is present while the surgery is happening and could still be present until the patient gets home. The procedure may take for about four to six hours, and may or may not need any blood transfusion.

Preparing for whipple surgery

Before doing the whipple surgery, some medical tests are needed. The patient may need to have an examination about his heart’s condition and as well as his lungs. A day before the scheduled operation for whipple surgery, the patient is required to have a clear liquid diet and needs to take some laxative such as magnesium citrate. The patient is not allowed to take any liquids from midnight up to the day of surgery. On the day of the whipple surgery, the patient must practice some breathing exercises which will prevent the patient from having possible pneumonia after the operation.

When whipple surgery is done successfully, the patient needs to stay in the hospital for a couple of days to two weeks for some further observation and additional treatments. In normal situation, a day after the whipple surgery, the patient needs to practice to sit on a chair and do some walking to prevent blood clots, pneumonia and to speed up the recovery period.

After five to seven days of the whipple surgery, the tube that is being connected to the part of which is the NG tube is taken out but the Jackson Pratt Drains tube will remain. It is left in order to suck excess and continuous secretion even when the patient is discharged.

The Jackson Pratt drain tube will be taken by the doctor after two to three weeks of the whipple surgery. There are prescribed medications that the patient needs to take in order to prevent the body from certain complications. The patient should have soft diet for a couple of weeks to ensure that the procedure is successful. Visiting the doctor on  a regular basis will help the patient have a fast recovery from whipple surgery.