Anastomotic leak in colorectal surgery: A single surgeon’s experience

Background: Anastomotic leakage following colorectal resection and anastomosis has been proposed as a colorectal surgical indicator. Leak rates after elective surgery vary and tend to be higher as anastomoses become lower. The present study audits leak rates and outcomes of patients undergoing colorectal surgery, under the care of a single surgeon, in two geographically different centres. Methods: Patients presenting to the University Colorectal Service in Wellington between 1975 and 1990 and patients presenting to the colorectal service at King Faisal Specialist Hospital (KFSH) between 1990 and 1999 were recorded in computerized databases. These databases were searched for patients who developed anastomotic leakage. The records of patients identified were examined in relation to diagnoses, presentation, primary operation, further surgery performed, and final outcome. Results: Two thousand and 11 patients were entered into the Wellington database and 1348 were entered into the Riyadh database. Twenty‐nine patients with a leaking anastomosis (3.6%) were identified. There were 19 male patients. The postoperative mortality rate in patients who did not leak was 1.7% but in patients wh