Background: Hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) administration can be associated with hyperglycemia during perfusion. Little is known about this effect, and no previous studies have examined patient characteristics associated with perfusion-related hyperglycemia.
Methods: We retrospectively identified consecutive patients at a single institution treated with HIPEC from 8/2003 to 10/2016 who had intraoperative blood glucose measured. Hypertonic 1.5% dextrose-containing peritoneal dialysate was used as carrier solution in all patients. Comparisons were made using parametric [Student's t test, analysis of variance (ANOVA)], and nonparametric tests (χ 2, Kruskal-Wallis) where appropriate.
Results: There were 85 patients identified, with average age of 53 ± 12 years, 69 (81%) with appendiceal or colorectal peritoneal cancer. Most patients were perfused with mitomycin C (69%) or oxaliplatin (24%). Intraoperative hyperglycemia (> 180 mg/dL) affected the majority of patients (86%), with values up to 651 mg/dL. Insulin was required for treatment in 66% of patients. Peak hyperglycemia occurred within an hour of perfusion in 91%, and resolved by postoperative day one in 91% of patients. Glucose > 309 mg/dL (highest quartile) was associated with longer operating time (p = 0.03) and with use of oxaliplatin compared with mitomycin C (p = 0.01). No association was found with other comorbidities, peritoneal carcinomatosis index score, or postoperative outcomes.
Conclusions: Most patients experience hyperglycemia during HIPEC. This is not clearly associated with patient factors, and may be due to use of dextrose-containing carrier solution. Since perioperative hyperglycemia has potential negative impact, use of dextrose-containing carrier solution should be questioned and is worth investigating further.