Denver peritoneovenous shunting for malignant or cirrhotic ascites. A prospective consecutive series.

A Denver peritoneovenous (PV) shunt was inserted in 54 consecutive patients for relief of malignant (24 patients) or cirrhotic (30) refractory ascites. The median age of both groups was 58 years, and the most frequent diagnoses were gastrointestinal (15) or ovarian (7) cancers and alcoholic cirrhosis (25). Median survival time was 1.7 and 3.5 months (range, 0.1-15.5 and 0.1-50.5), and the 1-month mortality 42% and 27%, respectively. Postoperative 24-h urinary output increased by 2-31, and the 1-week weight reduction was 8 and 11 kg, respectively, compared with before shunting. Complete shunt failure was encountered early in two patients, due to catheter malposition and clotting. Four more patients experienced transient failure, for an early dysfunction rate of 11%. A shunt-related operative mortality of 6% was caused by pulmonary oedema (two patients) and sepsis (one patient). Shunt malfunction intervened in almost half (6 of 14) of the cancer patients surviving 1 month but was relieved in all but 1. In 3 of 22 cirrhotic 1-month survivors, the Denver shunt had to be removed owing to clotting or sepsis (2 patients) or revised because of blockage. Seven patients with cirrhosis are alive a median of 18 months (range, 2-51) after PV shunt surgery. Side effects were detected in 22 patients (41%): thromboembolism (9 patients), sepsis (7), initially bleeding oesophageal varices (3), DIC syndrome (2), postoperative hepatic coma (2), ascitic leakage (2), and pulmonary oedema (2). Patients with gastrointestinal cancers or severe cardiac disease did not benefit from the procedure. A history of hepatic encephalopathy or a serum bilirubin level above about 100 mumol/l was a bad prognostic sign. We could confirm the reported considerable morbidity and mortality after PV shunting, but also its efficiency in certain cases. Careful patient selection and follow-up study, timing of operation, and adherence to technical details are mandatory to improve the results.