Therapeutic effect of portal vein stenting for portal vein stenosis after upper-abdominal surgery

Background: The therapeutic effect of portal vein (PV) stenting for PV stenosis following nontransplant hepato-pancreato-biliary (HPB) surgery has not been fully investigated.Methods: Changes in portal venous pressure (PVP) gradient before and after stenting, complications, symptomatic improvement, and stent patency were evaluated.Results: We identified 14 consecutive patients undergoing PV stenting for malignant (n = 8) and benign (n = 6) PV stenosis. Signs of PV stenosis were composed of refractory ascites in 6 patients, varices with hemorrhagic tendencies in 5, and abnormal liver function in 5. The median PVP gradient after PV stenting was 3.0 cm H2O (range, 1.5-3.0), which was significantly smaller than that before PV stenting (median, 15 cm H2O [range, 2.5-25]; P < 0.01). Thirteen out of 14 (93%) achieved clinical success with symptomatic improvement, except one patient with sustained refractory ascites because of peritoneal seeding. During the median follow-up time of 7.3 months (range, 1.0-87), stent occlusion occurred in two patients (14%) because of intrastent tumor growth. The 1-year cumulative stent patency rate was 76% in the entire cohort.Conclusions: Based on durable effect on patency, we deemed PV stenting for PV stenosis after HPB surgery to be safe and beneficial for improving symptoms.