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Medicina
Special Issues
Advances and Future Perspectives in Abdominal and Gastrointestinal Surgery
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Advances and Future Perspectives in Abdominal and Gastrointestinal Surgery

A special issue of Medicina (ISSN 1648-9144). This special issue belongs to the section "Gastroenterology & Hepatology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 2742

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Stamatis Angelopoulos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Fourth Department of Surgery, General Hospital of Thessaloniki “G. Papanikolaou”, School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Science, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 57010 Thessaloniki, Greece
Interests: abdominal surgery; gastrointestinal surgery; general surgery; surgical oncology; minimally invasive surgery; perioperative management; surgical innovation
Dr. Efstathios Kotidis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Fourth Department of Surgery, General Hospital of Thessaloniki “G. Papanikolaou”, School of Medicine, Faculty of Health Science, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 57010 Thessaloniki, Greece
Interests: abdominal surgery; gastrointestinal surgery; general surgery; surgical oncology; minimally invasive surgery; perioperative management; surgical innovation
Dr. Elissavet Anestiadou

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor Assistant
4th Department of Surgery, General Hospital “George Papanikolaou”, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 57010 Exochi, Greece
Interests: surgery; gastrointestinal surgery

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, the field of abdominal and gastrointestinal surgery has rapidly evolved, driven by technological advancements, innovative surgical techniques, and a deeper understanding of patient-centered care and disease pathophysiology.

This Special Issue, titled “Advances and Future Perspectives in Abdominal and Gastrointestinal Surgery”, will explore the latest developments and future directions in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of abdominal and gastrointestinal conditions, both in elective and emergency settings. There will be a special focus on breakthroughs in minimally invasive and robotic surgery, precision medicine, enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols, and novel approaches to achieving optimal perioperative patient care. We also encourage contributions on topics such as advanced imaging techniques for preoperative planning, intraoperative technologies, emerging biomaterials, the optimization of perioperative care, the role of multidisciplinary collaboration in improving patient outcomes, and the education and training of novel surgeons in abdominal and gastrointestinal surgical procedures. This Special Issue will also highlight emerging research trends that address complex pathologies and incorporate evidence-based practices to enhance surgical success and recovery. By bringing together original research articles, comprehensive reviews, and expert opinions, this Special Issue will provide a platform for knowledge exchange and innovation, ultimately advancing the standard of care in abdominal and gastrointestinal surgery.

We invite you to submit your valuable contributions, including research articles, reviews, and clinical studies, to help shape the future of this dynamic surgical field.

Prof. Dr. Stamatis Angelopoulos
Dr. Efstathios Kotidis
Guest Editors

Dr. Elissavet Anestiadou
Guest Editor Assistant

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Medicina is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • abdominal surgery
  • gastrointestinal surgery
  • general surgery
  • minimally invasive surgery
  • perioperative management
  • surgical innovation

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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17 pages, 1711 KB  
Article
Red Cell Distribution Width-to-Albumin Ratio as an Early Predictor of Intensive Care Requirement and Mortality in Acute Pancreatitis
by Mehmet Kasım Aydın, Zekiye Nur Harput and Mehmet Cudi Tuncer
Medicina 2026, 62(2), 248; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina62020248 - 24 Jan 2026
Viewed by 759
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is an acute inflammatory disease ranging from mild, self-limiting forms to severe presentations associated with high morbidity and mortality. Early prognostic assessment is crucial for guiding clinical management. This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is an acute inflammatory disease ranging from mild, self-limiting forms to severe presentations associated with high morbidity and mortality. Early prognostic assessment is crucial for guiding clinical management. This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of the red cell distribution width-to-albumin ratio (RDW/Alb, RAR) in relation to clinically relevant outcomes, including intensive care unit (ICU) admission and in-hospital mortality, in patients with AP. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 282 patients diagnosed with AP who were hospitalized at Mersin University Hospital between January 2019 and February 2024. Clinical, laboratory, and radiological data were retrospectively analyzed. The predictive performance of RAR was evaluated and compared with established clinical scoring systems, including bedside index for severity in acute pancreatitis (BISAP), systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), harmless acute pancreatitis score (HAPS), and pancreatitis activity scoring system (PASS). Results: The median RDW-to-albumin ratio (RAR) was 3.9 (range: 2.6–36.7). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis demonstrated that RAR showed good predictive performance for ICU admission (Area Under the Curve (AUC): 0.781; p < 0.001; optimal cut-off: 4.15) and high predictive performance for in-hospital mortality (AUC: 0.927; p < 0.001; optimal cut-off: 5.26). RAR exhibited limited but statistically significant discriminatory performance when compared with the BISAP score (AUC: 0.591; p = 0.017), whereas no significant predictive performance was observed in relation to PASS, HAPS, or SIRS scores. Conclusions: Within the context of this retrospective cohort, RAR is a simple, inexpensive, and readily available biomarker that may be associated with ICU admission and in-hospital mortality in patients with AP. Given the absence of standard severity endpoints such as persistent organ failure or pancreatic necrosis, these findings should not be interpreted as evidence of conventional disease severity prediction but rather as hypothesis-generating observations that warrant validation in larger prospective studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Future Perspectives in Abdominal and Gastrointestinal Surgery)
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14 pages, 446 KB  
Article
Laparoscopic Radical Colectomy with Complete Mesocolic Excision Offers Similar Results Compared with Open Surgery
by Vasile V. Bintintan, Vlad Fagarasan, Radu I. Seicean, David Andras, Alexandru I. Ene, Romeo Chira, Adriana Bintintan, Georgiana Nagy, Cristina Petrisor, Simona Cocu, Elena Stefanescu, Ionut Negoi, Adrian Calborean, George C. Dindelegan, Ciprian Silaghi, Iulia Lupan and Gabriel Samasca
Medicina 2025, 61(7), 1231; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina61071231 - 7 Jul 2025
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1302
Abstract
Background and Objectives: The technique of complete mesocolic excision (CME) for colonic cancer is being advocated to improve the local control of the disease and increase the long-term survival. However, even with an open approach, CME is a complex technique and has [...] Read more.
Background and Objectives: The technique of complete mesocolic excision (CME) for colonic cancer is being advocated to improve the local control of the disease and increase the long-term survival. However, even with an open approach, CME is a complex technique and has not yet been adopted as standard care. Laparoscopy has been proven to bring significant advantages to colorectal surgery but performing a laparoscopic CME (Lap-CME) for colonic cancer is even more technically demanding than CME in open surgery. The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether Lap-CME can be offered as a standard procedure for patients with colonic cancer and to compare the results with those obtained after a conventional, open technique. Materials and methods: This study included 100 consecutive patients with colonic cancer, who were operated on by the same surgical team using a standardized medial-to-lateral open or laparoscopic complete mesocolic excision technique. The perioperative data was prospectively recorded in a database and retrospectively analyzed with the aim of identifying the proportion of patients that received Lap-CME, to evaluate the success rate of the procedure and to identify whether there are differences in the oncological quality of CME between the laparoscopic and open surgery groups. Results: Most of the patients enrolled in this study were in the advanced stages of the disease, with the incidence of pT3 tumors being 67% and the mean tumor size averaging 4.5 cm. Laparoscopic CME was performed in 39% of cases overall, with 41.4% being right colectomies, 42.5% being left colectomies and 16.1% being transverse colectomies. All of the parameters relevant to the oncological quality of resection, namely total lymph node count, resection margins, or the completeness of resection, were similar between the open and laparoscopic groups both when analyzed for the entire cohort or when analyzed for specific subgroups according to the tumor location (right, transverse, or left colon) or stage of the disease (pT3 or stage III). Conclusions: Laparoscopic complete mesocolic excision for colonic cancer can be offered as a standard procedure by experienced surgical teams in carefully selected patients and provides oncological results similar to those obtained with open surgery. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Future Perspectives in Abdominal and Gastrointestinal Surgery)
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19 pages, 481 KB  
Systematic Review
Impact of Gut Microbiota on the Clinical Course and Treatment Outcomes of Colorectal Cancer—A Systematic Review
by Ilektra Kyrochristou, Fotios Fousekis, Gerasimia D. Kyrochristou, Dimitrios Schizas, George Pappas-Gogos, Dimitrios Raptis, Orestis Ioannidis, Konstantinos Vlachos and Georgios D. Lianos
Medicina 2026, 62(6), 1050; https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina62061050 - 28 May 2026
Abstract
Background and Perspectives: As colorectal cancer research focuses on improving screening policies and treatment strategies, the gut microbiome is emerging as a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker. This systematic review aims to present the available data on the role of gut microbiota in [...] Read more.
Background and Perspectives: As colorectal cancer research focuses on improving screening policies and treatment strategies, the gut microbiome is emerging as a novel diagnostic and prognostic biomarker. This systematic review aims to present the available data on the role of gut microbiota in colorectal cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment response. Materials and Methods: A systematic search under the PRISMA recommendation was conducted in PubMed database, until February 2026. Original human studies evaluating associations between gut microbiome composition and CRC diagnosis, survival outcomes, or therapeutic response were included. Both stool- and tissue-based analyses were considered. A qualitative synthesis of the data was performed. Results: Thirty-six studies met the inclusion criteria, encompassing case–control cohorts, prospective survival analyses, and early-phase translational trials. Across populations and sequencing methodologies, gut microbiome alterations were consistently identified, with enrichment of oral-derived anaerobes, particularly Fusobacterium nucleatum, and depletion of beneficial commensal taxa in CRC patients compared with controls. Beta-diversity analyses frequently showed distinct clustering of microbial communities between the CRC and control groups, whereas alpha-diversity findings were heterogeneous. Several stool-based multi-species classifiers demonstrated good to excellent diagnostic performance, particularly when combined with established screening modalities. Tumor-associated microbial signatures were further associated with adverse survival outcomes and, in exploratory cohorts, with differential treatment response. Emerging evidence suggests that the microbiome may represent a modifiable environmental factor, particularly relevant in early-onset CRC. Conclusions: The gut microbiome represents a promising adjunctive biomarker for CRC diagnosis and prognostic stratification, with potential implications for precision oncology. However, methodological heterogeneity and the need for prospective validation currently limit its routine clinical implementation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances and Future Perspectives in Abdominal and Gastrointestinal Surgery)
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