Pancreatic Debridement via Sinus Tract Endoscopy
Massachusetts General Hospital

Peter Fagenholz, MD
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Massachusetts General Hospital
Harvard Medical School

This patient is a 58-year-old male who was in a motor vehicle accident and developed a persistent necrotic collection adjacent to the pancreatic tail that did not improve with percutaneous drainage. Here, Dr. Peter Fagenholz at MGH performs a pancreatic debridement using sinus tract endoscopy (STE), a minimally-invasive technique for debridement of dead or infected tissue.

STE and other minimally-invasive techniques have significantly decreased morbidity and mortality for patients undergoing intervention for infected pancreatic necrosis. Common management principles include early non-interventional management to allow the necrosis to wall off, initial intervention with minimally-invasive drainage, and minimally-invasive necrosectomy addressing clearly demarcated necrosis.

STE involves the placement of a percutaneous drain followed by fluoroscopically-guided dilation of the drain tract to allow for placement of a working sheath, through which an endoscope can be introduced to debride the peripancreatic necrosis. After debridement, a drain is then replaced through the same tract.