Research - Gastrointestinal Surgery Service

The research carried out at the Gastrointestinal Surgery Service is basically clinical, though some experimental surgery studies have been carried out at CRESS. The research is carried out in the Liver, Digestive system and Metabolism area of the August Pi Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS), specifically in the following group:

The objectives of research in Gastrointestinal Surgery are to define the best surgical techniques for the treatment of patients, and to implement the technology that allows improving both these techniques and the survival and quality of life of patients with ailments of the gastrointestinal tract, both benign and malignant.

The experience of the Gastrointestinal Surgery Service in minimally invasive surgery is very extensive. There is much research on the effects of this surgery reflected in several articles published in high impact journals.

In addition, the General Gastrointestinal Surgery Service has extensive experience in performing surgical techniques through natural orifices. Surgery is the cornerstone of rectal cancer treatment. For tumors of the middle and lower rectum, successful surgery at the oncological level requires a total mesorectal excision (TME). The quality of this excision is the main prognostic factor of survival and, specifically, of local recurrence. TME has been performed openly, laparoscopically or robotically, but there is no consensus when it comes to determining which is the gold-standard approach. Transanal Total Mesorectal Excision (TaTME) has recently been developed, combining a transanal approach with the conventional laparoscopic one.

The fundamentals of the TaTME technique are used in benign diseases, beyond cancer. The Service has extensive experience in the treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Hartmann's reconstruction. As a result of this experience, different analyses have been carried out and numerous articles have been published.