Management of biliary stricture in patients with IgG4-related sclerosing cholangitis. PLoS One. 2020;15:e0232089. [PMID: 32353060 PMCID: PMC7192452 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232089]

Efficacy and safety of sequential cutting of nasobiliary tubes as an alternative to stent placement after nasobiliary drainage for the treatment of hilar malignant biliary stricture: a retrospective cohort study

Background

The rising incidence of hilar malignant bile duct strictures poses challenges for diagnosis and treatment. While endoscopic treatment is essential for relieving obstruction, it carries a high risk of postoperative cholangitis. Sequential cutting of nasobiliary tubes as an alternative to stent placement after nasobiliary drainage may emerge as an effective strategy to mitigate these complications.

Objectives

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of nasobiliary tube cutting after nasobiliary drainage versus conventional stent placement in reducing postoperative cholangitis in patients with hilar malignant biliary strictures.

Design

A retrospective cohort study.

Methods

From 2015 to 2023, 208 patients were divided into two groups: nasobiliary tube cutting group (n = 103) and conventional stent group (n = 105). The primary outcome was postoperative cholangitis, with secondary outcomes including drainage success, bilirubin reduction, re-interventions, complications, and hospital stay.

Results

Cholangitis occurred in 11.7% of the nasobiliary tube cutting group and 26.7% of the conventional stent group (p = 0.006). Successful drainage was achieved in 84 patients (81.6%) in the nasobiliary tube cutting group and 78 patients (74.3%) in the conventional stent group, with no statistically significant difference (p = 0.207). Patients whose total bilirubin reduction >50% within 7 days were significantly higher in the nasobiliary tube cutting group (48.5% vs 27.6%, p = 0.002). There were no significant differences between the groups in the number of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography procedures or re-interventions required (p > 0.05). Except for postoperative cholangitis, other postoperative complications were comparable between the groups (p > 0.05). The postoperative hospital stay was significantly longer in the nasobiliary tube cutting group, with a median duration of 10.0 (7.0, 14.0) days compared to 7.0 (5.5, 12.5) days in the conventional stent group (p = 0.024). Bismuth-Corlette Type IV was identified as an independent risk factor for cholangitis (OR = 3.207, 95%CI: 1.253-8.210, p = 0.015).

Conclusion

For patients with hilar malignant biliary stricture, sequential cutting of nasobiliary tubes as an alternative to stent placement after nasobiliary drainage may reduce the incidence of postoperative cholangitis and achieve early successful drainage, but it may result in a prolonged postoperative hospital stay. Bismuth-Corlette Type IV is an independent risk factor for the development of postoperative cholangitis.

Request for biliary drainage for IgG4-SC could be waived before steroid administration?

BACKGROUND

In IgG4-related sclerosing cholangitis (IgG4-SC), the necessity of biliary drainage (BD) is unclear. In this study, we aimed to retrospectively investigate the improvement of liver damage and jaundice in cases of IgG4-SC with and without BD, before starting steroids.

METHODS

A total of 52 patients with IgG4-SC were investigated in the study. The study endpoints were the normalization rate of alkaline phosphatase (ALP)/total bilirubin (T-Bil) after 8 weeks of steroids, with and without BD.

RESULTS

Propensity score matching was performed based on ALP and T-Bil, and 28 patients were included. There were 14 patients each in the BD and non-BD groups. Before initiation of steroids, the mean ALP in the BD group and the non-BD group was 378/461 (P = .541); the mean T-Bil was 2.5/1.8 (P = .401). Eight weeks after initiation of steroids, ALP improvement rate in the BD group/non-BD group was 69.2%/61.5% (P = 1.000), and T-Bil improvement rate was 100%/100% (P = Ns).

CONCLUSIONS

Steroids for IgG4-SC could prove effective in improving liver damage and jaundice, regardless of the presence or absence of BD. BD for IgG4-SC aimed to improve jaundice may not be necessary.

IgG4-Related Sclerosing Cholangitis with Cholecystitis Mimicking Cholangiocarcinoma: A Case Report

IgG4-related diseases are rare multisystem disorders involving salivary glands, retroperitoneum, pancreas, biliary tract, and liver. Isolated biliary strictures and gall bladder involvement are rare in such patients, and presentation with cholangitis and weight loss can misguide the diagnosis toward malignancy. Here, we report an interesting case of IgG4-related biliary stricture with gall bladder involvement, presented with cholangitis and weight loss. The initial symptoms and imaging were guided toward the malignant possibilities of cholangiocarcinoma and pancreatic carcinoma. However, endosonography, serology, and histopathology clinched the diagnosis of IgG4-related disease. The patient was managed without any biliary intervention and with antibiotics, steroids, and steroid-sparing agents. There was a relapse of disease during the steroids taper that improved after hiking its doses. The disease responded with medical management on follow-up. We demonstrated the effectiveness of steroid-sparing agents to treat IgG4-related diseases, especially to avert the steroid-related adverse effects. This case highlights the possible mislead for the diagnosis and delayed management of IgG4 disease due to shared clinical features with hepatobiliary malignancies and the effectiveness of noninvasive measures of management.

Role of Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography in the Diagnosis and Management of Cholestatic Liver Diseases

Cholestatic liver diseases (CLDs) occur as a result of bile duct injury, emanating into duct obstruction and bile stasis. Advances in radiological imaging in the last decade has replaced endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) as the first diagnostic tool, except in certain groups of patients, such as those with ischemic cholangiopathy (IsC) or early stages of primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). ERCP provides an opportunity for targeted tissue acquisition for histopathological evaluation and carries a diverse therapeutic profile to restore bile flow. The aim of this review article is to appraise the diagnostic and therapeutic roles of ERCP in CLDs.

Cholestatic liver disease: Practice guidelines from the Saudi Association for the Study of Liver diseases and Transplantation

Cholestatic liver diseases (CLDs) are a group of diseases characterized by jaundice and cholestasis as the main presentation with different complications, which have considerable impact on the liver and can lead to end-stage liver disease, cirrhosis, and liver-related complications. In the last few years, tremendous progress has been made in understanding the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of patients with these conditions. However, several aspects related to the management of CLDs remain deficient and unclear. Due to the lack of recommendations that can help in the management, treatment of those conditions, the Saudi Association for the Study of Liver diseases and Transplantation (SASLT) has created a task force group to develop guidelines related to CLDs management in order to provide a standard of care for patients in need. These guidelines provide general guidance for health care professionals to optimize medical care for patients with CLDs for both adult and pediatric populations, in association with clinical judgments to be considered on a case-by-case basis. These guidelines describe common CLDs in Saudi Arabia, with recommendations on the best approach for diagnosis and management of different diseases based on the Grading of Recommendation Assessment (GRADE), combined with a level of evidence available in the literature.

Usefulness of ultrasonography to assess the response to steroidal therapy for the rare case of type 2b immunoglobulin G4-related sclerosing cholangitis without pancreatitis: A case report

BACKGROUND

A type 2b immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4)-related sclerosing cholangitis (SC) without autoimmune pancreatitis is a rare condition with IgG4-SC. While the variety of the imaging modalities have tested its usefulness in diagnosing the IgG4-SC, however, the usage of ultrasonography for the assessment of the response to steroidal therapy on the changes of bile duct wall thickness have not been reported in the condition. Therefore, the information of our recent case and reported cases have been summarized.

CASE SUMMARY

We report the case of an 82-year-old Japanese man diagnosed with isolated IgG4-related SC based on the increase of serum IgG4, narrowing of the bile duct, its wall thickness, no complication of autoimmune pancreatitis, and IgG4 positive inflammatory cell infiltration to the wall with the fibrotic changes. The cholangiogram revealed type 2b according to the classification. Corticosteroid treatment showed a favorable effect, with the smooth decrease in serum IgG4 and the improvement of the bile duct wall thickness.

CONCLUSION

As isolated type 2b, IgG4-SC is rare, the images, histological findings, and clinical course of our case will be helpful for physicians to diagnose and treat the new cases appropriately.