Advances in the endoscopic management of malignant biliary obstruction

Case report: The diagnostic dilemma of indeterminate biliary strictures: report on two cases with a literature review

Background

It is still a challenging problem for clinicians to explore the nature of the indeterminate biliary strictures (IBSs). Approximately 20% of biliary strictures remain undetermined after a thorough preoperative assessment.

Case presentation

Here, we present two cases of indeterminate biliary strictures patients, whose cross- sectional imaging and endoscopic examination were nondiagnostic. The patients underwent exploratory laparotomy finally and were confirmed as malignancy. We also reviewed the recent reports in literatures regarding the evaluation of IBSs.

Conclusions

Given the majority of the biliary strictures are malignancy, preoperative differentiation between benign and malignant is critical for choosing the best therapeutic regimen. Thus, close follow-up, multiple multidisciplinary discussion, and prompt surgical exploration are necessary for some difficult diagnostic cases.

Palliative endoscopic retrograde biliary drainage for malignant biliary obstruction in Korea: A nationwide assessment

BACKGROUND

Malignant biliary obstruction (MBO) is usually caused by biliary tract cancer or pancreatic cancer. This study was performed to summarize the current situation regarding palliative endoscopic retrograde biliary drainage (ERBD) for MBO in Korea and to determine its clinical significance by analyzing representative nationwide data.

METHODS

Patients that underwent palliative ERBD for MBO between 2012 and 2015 were identified using the Health Insurance Review and Assessment database, which covers the entire Korean population. We assessed clinical characteristics and complications and compared the clinical impacts of initial metal and plastic stenting in these patients.

RESULTS

A total of 9,728 subjects (mean age, 65 ± 11.4 years; male, 61.4%) were identified and analyzed. The most common diagnosis was malignant neoplasm of liver and intrahepatic bile ducts (32.1%) and this was followed by extrahepatic or Ampulla of Vater cancer and pancreatic cancer. Initial plastic stent(s) placement was performed in 52.9% of the study subjects, and metal stent(s) placement was performed in 23.3%. The number of sessions of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) or percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD) was significantly higher in patients that underwent initial plastic stenting than in patients that underwent metal stenting (2.2 ± 1.7 vs 1.8 ± 1.4, P < 0.0001), but rates of post-ERCP pancreatitis, hospital days, and time to second ERCP or PTBD were not significantly different.

CONCLUSION

This nationwide assessment study suggests that initial metal stenting is associated with fewer sessions of total ERCP or PTBD following the initial procedure, despite the preference for initial plastic stenting in Korea.