Abstract
Recently malignant tumors of the liver, bile duct and pancreas have been increasingly detected in very elderly people, but operations of these organs are seriously invasive and are associated with fatal complications in many cases. Accordingly we often have great difficulties in treating them.
An 84-year-old woman was referred to our hospital because of high fever and jaundice. She had underlying diseases such as diabetes mellitus and hypertension. Subtotal stomach-preserving pancreaticoduodenectomy was performed with a diagnosis of cancer of the inferior bile duct. However, intermittent fever persisted after the operation. On the 11th postoperative day, thrombosis of the right internal jugular vein at where a central venous catheter had been placed and septic pulmonary embolism (SPE) became apparent. Thereafter she was associated with Staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome (SSSS). Administration of appropriate antimicrobial agents gave relief for her. She was discharged from the hospital on independent gait on the 51th postoperative day.
There is a usual possibility that highly invasive surgeries can cause serious infections in elderly patients, so that we must keep these diseases in mind.
