Complications in Biliopancreatic Surgery

The complications of biliopancreatic surgery have a very variable range of incidence showing surgical procedures with low incidence of complications such as simple cholecystectomy and complex or very complex procedures such as pancreatic resections followed by high incidence of postoperative complications. The purpose of this editorial is to examine a number of specific complications unique to biliopancreatic surgery such as: pancreatic fistula in relation to the different types of pancreaticdigestive anastomosis and biliary injuries after biliary surgery. Pancreatic and biliary surgical complications include a large range of conditions with overlapping clinical presentations and diverse therapeutic choices. The true incidence of pancreatic and biliary complications is difficult to determine due to selection and reporting bias. The treatment of these complications continues to evolve and patients may require endoscopic, surgical, and/or percutaneous techniques.