The Role of Endoscopic Biliary Drainage without Sphincterotomy in Gallstone Patients with Cholangitis and Suspected Common Bile Duct Stones Not Detected by Cholangiogram or Intraductal Ultrasonography

Minimal endoscopic sphincterotomy followed by papillary balloon dilation to relieve choledocholithiasis in a 6-year-old girl with hereditary spherocytosis

A 6-year-old girl previously diagnosed with hereditary spherocytosis was admitted to our hospital with gallstones and cholangitis. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) was performed, and fluoroscopy revealed a dilated common bile duct (CBD) without evident stones, possibly due to spontaneous excretion through the papilla of Vater. A 7-French plastic stent was inserted into the CBD. After the procedure, a marked increase in pancreatic enzyme levels was observed, and she was diagnosed with post-ERCP pancreatitis (PEP). Stent placement could have been a cause of pancreatitis; therefore, we removed the stent. Subsequently, recovery from pancreatitis was confirmed, although she suddenly complained of abdominal pain and was diagnosed with choledocholithiasis recurrence. ERCP was repeated, and fluoroscopy revealed a dilated CBD with a stone. A minimal endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST) was performed to reduce the risk of PEP, and a biliary dilation balloon placed across the papilla was gradually inflated until the waist of the balloon disappeared. Stones were extracted using a retrieval balloon catheter. The abdominal pain resolved immediately, and the patient recovered without developing PEP. To our knowledge, this is the first case report of a pediatric patient treated with minimal EST followed by papillary balloon dilation for choledocholithiasis.

PANC Study (Pancreatitis: A National Cohort Study): national cohort study examining the first 30 days from presentation of acute pancreatitis in the UK

BACKGROUND

Acute pancreatitis is a common, yet complex, emergency surgical presentation. Multiple guidelines exist and management can vary significantly. The aim of this first UK, multicentre, prospective cohort study was to assess the variation in management of acute pancreatitis to guide resource planning and optimize treatment.

METHODS

All patients aged greater than or equal to 18 years presenting with acute pancreatitis, as per the Atlanta criteria, from March to April 2021 were eligible for inclusion and followed up for 30 days. Anonymized data were uploaded to a secure electronic database in line with local governance approvals.

RESULTS

A total of 113 hospitals contributed data on 2580 patients, with an equal sex distribution and a mean age of 57 years. The aetiology was gallstones in 50.6 per cent, with idiopathic the next most common (22.4 per cent). In addition to the 7.6 per cent with a diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis, 20.1 per cent of patients had a previous episode of acute pancreatitis. One in 20 patients were classed as having severe pancreatitis, as per the Atlanta criteria. The overall mortality rate was 2.3 per cent at 30 days, but rose to one in three in the severe group. Predictors of death included male sex, increased age, and frailty; previous acute pancreatitis and gallstones as aetiologies were protective. Smoking status and body mass index did not affect death.

CONCLUSION

Most patients presenting with acute pancreatitis have a mild, self-limiting disease. Rates of patients with idiopathic pancreatitis are high. Recurrent attacks of pancreatitis are common, but are likely to have reduced risk of death on subsequent admissions.

Comprehensive review on small common bile duct stones

Common bile duct stones are among the most common conditions encountered by endoscopists. Therefore, it is well researched; however, some items, such as indications for endoscopic papillary balloon dilatation (EPBD), safety of EPBD and endoscopic sphincterotomy in patients receiving dual antiplatelet therapy or direct oral anticoagulant, selection strategy for retrieval balloons and baskets, lack adequate evidence. Therefore, the guidelines have been updated with new research, while others remain unchanged due to weak evidence. In this review, we comprehensively summarize the standard methods in guidelines and new findings from recent studies on papillary dilation, stone retrieval devices, difficult-to-treat cases, troubleshooting during the procedure, and complicated cases of cholangitis, cholecystolithiasis, or distal biliary stricture.

The therapeutic effect of balloon dilatation with different duration for biliary duct calculi: A network meta-analysis

Objective:

To systematically evaluate the application effect of endoscopic papillary balloon dilatation (EPBD) with different balloon dilatation duration for biliary duct calculi, and find the most appropriate dilatation duration for EPBD using a network meta-analysis.

Materials and Methods:

PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library databases were searched for relevant randomised controlled trials (RCTs) published up to August 2020. Node split, consistency and inconsistency models analysis were all conducted in network meta-analysis.

Results:

Eighteen RCTs with 2256 participants were finally analysed. EPBD was divided into four categories based on balloon dilatation duration, including EPBD (P0.5), EPBD (>0.5, ≤1), EPBD (1, ≤2) and EPBD (>2, ≤5). Compared with EPBD (>0.5, ≤1), EPBD (>2, ≤5) had a lower risk of early complications (odds ratio [OR] = 0.23, 95% credible interval [CI] = 0.05–0.96) and post-endoscopic procedure pancreatitis (PEP) (OR = 0.17, 95% CI = 0.03–0.72). Endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST) tended to have less need for mechanical lithotripsy (OR = 0.37, 95% CI = 0.16–0.88) and PEP (OR = 0.26, 95% CI = 0.08–0.71) than EPBD (>0.5, ≤1). EPBD (>2, ≤5) was the safest endoscopic procedure with respect to early complications (surface area under cumulative ranking curves [SUCRA] = 79.0) and PEP (SUCRA = 85.3). In addition, EPBD (>2, ≤5) and EST had the highest probability of being the best (SUCRA = 82.6) and the worst (SUCRA = 10.8), respectively, regarding late complications.

Conclusion:

EPBD and EST are two methods used to treat uncomplicated choledocholithiasis (stone diameter <10 mm and stone number <3). The extension of balloon dilatation duration has no significant influence on successful stone removal in the first endoscopic session or preventing the need for mechanical lithotripsy. However, it can reduce the risk of early complications, especially PEP. What's more, EPBD seems to have less late complications compared with EST, and the effect of prolonged balloon dilatation duration on late complications still needs to be further explored. Therefore, 2–5 min is the recommended dilatation duration range for EPBD using balloon with ≤10 mm diameter. Further research based on a specific population and with a longer follow-up time are needed.

[Endoscopically non-removable stones of the common bile duct]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effectiveness of long-term biliary stenting in the treatment of endoscopically intractable common bile duct stones.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The study enrolled 247 patients with endoscopically non-removable bile duct calculi («difficult» choledocholithiasis) divided into two comparable groups. The main group included 129 patients who underwent biliary stenting with original stents with a nanocarbon inert coating (RF patent No. 84226), including those with inclusion of silver nanoclusters (RF patent No. 129397). The control group included 118 patients who underwent all methods of surgical treatment of choledocholithiasis, while biliary stents with original nanocarbon silver-containing inert coating were excluded. The vast majority of patients were women of advanced age (mean 66.8±4.7 and 66.3±5.6, max 89 and 90, min 32 and 37 years, respectively).

RESULTS

In the control group, all patients underwent endoscopic transpapillary interventions as soon as possible. We could not extract common bile duct stones via endoscopic approach in 56.8% of cases. These patients underwent open or laparoscopic choledocholithotomy with lithoextraction. Complications occurred in 28.5% of cases. Mortality rate was 4.2%. Standard stenting of common bile duct was performed in 28.8% of cases. At the same time, stent dysfunction followed by relapse of obstructive jaundice occurred in 27.1% of patients within 3-3.5 months. Of these, 16 patients (13.5%) underwent stent removal and lithoextraction. Re-stenting was performed in 18 patients (15.3%). Moreover, shock wave lithotripsy with subsequent removal of common bile duct calculi was performed in 8 (6.8%) of these patients the next day. In the main group, original biliary plastic stents with nanocarbon silver-containing inert coating were implanted in all patients. Under permanent therapy with ursodeoxycholic acid drugs, we observed significant shrinkage of calculi to 11.8±1.8 mm and decrease in their density. This made it possible to carry out successful extraction of calculi in 81 patients (62.8%) after 6±0.3 months. Shock wave lithotripsy was performed in 36 (27.9%) cases. This procedure was successful and allowed final lithoextraction in 28 patients (21.7%). Re-stenting was performed in 15 (11.6%) cases, laparotomy - in 5 (3.9%) patients. Mortality rate was 0.78%.

CONCLUSION

Our data allow us to discuss high efficiency of long-term bile duct stenting with plastic stents with nanocarbon silver-containing inert coating in complex treatment of choledocholithiasis. This approach ensures acceptable incidence of undesirable complications and mortality. This situation undoubtedly dictates the need for further larger prospective studies.

Laparoscopic common bile duct exploration in patients with previous abdominal biliary tract operations

Background

A history of abdominal biliary tract surgery has been identified as a relative contraindication for laparoscopic common bile duct exploration (LCBDE), and there are very few reports about laparoscopic procedures in patients with a history of abdominal biliary tract surgery.

Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the clinical outcomes of 227 consecutive patients with previous abdominal biliary tract operations at our institution between December 2013 and June 2019. A total of 110 consecutive patients underwent LCBDE, and 117 consecutive patients underwent open common bile duct exploration (OCBDE). Patient demographics and perioperative variables were compared between the two groups.

Results

The LCBDE group performed significantly better than the OCBDE group with respect to estimated blood loss [30 (5–700) vs. 50 (10–1800) ml; p = 0.041], remnant common bile duct (CBD) stones (17 vs. 28%; p = 0.050), postoperative hospital stay [7 (3–78) vs. 8.5 (4.5–74) days; p = 0.041], and time to oral intake [2.5 (1–7) vs. 3 (2–24) days; p = 0.015]. There were no significant differences in the operation time [170 (60–480) vs. 180 (41–330) minutes; p = 0.067]. A total of 19 patients (17%) in the LCBDE group were converted to open surgery. According to Clavien’s classification of complications, the LCBDE group had significantly fewer postoperative complications than the OCBDE group (40 vs. 57; p = 0.045). There was no mortality in either group. Multiple previous operations (≥ 2 times), a history of open surgery, and previous biliary tract surgery (including bile duct or gallbladder + bile duct other than cholecystectomy alone) were risk factors for postoperative adhesion (p = 0.000, p = 0.000, and p = 0.000, respectively).

Conclusion

LCBDE is ultimately the least invasive, safest, and the most effective treatment option for patients with previous abdominal biliary tract operations and is especially suitable for those with a history of cholecystectomy, few previous operations (< 2 times), or a history of laparoscopic surgery.