Pancreaticoduodenectomy on soft-embalmed human cadavers according to Dodge – a pilot feasibility report

Objective

Pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is one of the most complex procedures in abdominal surgery. Nowadays, it is very difficult for novice surgeons to learn the procedure of PD on living patients. New concepts are needed to improve the surgical training of PD, comparable to education in the operating room.

Method

We investigated the feasibility of performing PD on a soft embalmed human cadaver using the Dodge preservation technique, considering all operative steps. Surgery was performed by a certified expert. The settings corresponded to the conditions of the operating room with the original surgical instruments and sutures. Upon completion of the PD, feedback in the form of a comprehensive questionnaire was obtained from the expert by evaluating all relevant operational steps in terms of realism using a 5 point Likert scale.

Results

PD was performed successfully by the expert. The results showed very good feasibility for PD on the used Dodge embalmed cadaver (DeC). The expert confirmed a realistic surgical performance similar to real-life conditions, with good color contrast, clearly visible tissue layers for a layered preparation, and a great result for the reconstruction part of the anastomoses.

Conclusions

New educational methods are needed to improve surgical training of PD. Hands-on training of PD performed on DeC enables a realistic surgical experience and offers a promising educational method for training in pancreatic surgery.