The Surgical Treatment of Portal Hypertension.

Abstract

A century and a half later, who has benefitted from the enormous amount of work done in portal hypertension? Clearly, the greatest beneficiaries have been patients: the progress generation over generation has been monumental, with outcomes achieved that could not have been imagined by the preceding generation. The groundwork laid by these pioneers has led to evidence‐based approaches to patients with portal hypertension today. This has allowed minimally invasive options for patients who are not candidates for transplant, as well as for those who need a bridge to transplant. Although the classic operative approaches to portal hypertension are uncommon today,52 the principles outlined through the current review have permitted advanced operative approaches for certain cancer resections and in other highly selected patients. We salute all of the pioneers in this field.