Distal pancreatectomy is a surgery performed to treat tumors in the distal pancreas. The minimally invasive approach to this surgery has become the standard due to its shorter hospital stay, quicker recovery, less pain, and similar complication rates compared to open surgery, especially for benign tumors. In selected patients with malignant tumors, minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy has gradually expanded to a state where it is not inferior to open surgery in terms of postoperative complications and long-term prognosis. As the average lifespan increases, elderly patients with comorbidities are steadily increasing in numbers among those who undergo distal pancreatectomy. However, predicting postoperative complications and mortality rates for these patients is still difficult. Simple yet effective predictive factors for postoperative complications are needed. The Canadian Study of Health and Aging has created a standardized frailty index (CSHA-FI) as a tool for predicting frailty in elderly patients, and a modified Frailty Index (mFI) has been developed for easy use. The mFI has been reported as a predictor of postoperative morbidity and mortality rates after colorectal and vascular surgery. This study aims to investigate whether mFI can be used as a predictive factor for postoperative morbidity and mortality rates in patients who undergo minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy and to utilize it for clinical treatment in the future.
This study aims to investigate the difference in postoperative complications according to the modified Frailty Index (mFI) in patients who underwent minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy for pancreatic tumors at the Asan Medical Center's Department of Hepato-Biliary-Pancreatic Surgery from 2005 to 2019. It also seeks to confirm the utility of mFI as a predictive factor for postoperative complications in frail patients in the future.