Symptomatic biliary obstruction associated with juxtapapillary duodenal diverticulum

A successfully treated case of Lemmel syndrome with pancreaticobiliary maljunction: A case report

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Lemmel syndrome is a rare condition that leads to cholangitis and/or pancreatitis due to intraduodenal diverticulum.

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Surgery is considered for the treatment of severe or repeated symptoms in patients with this condition.

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We herein report a successfully diagnosed and treated case of Lemmel syndrome with pancreaticobiliary maljunction.

Background

Lemmel syndrome is a rare condition that leads to cholangitis and/or pancreatitis due to intraduodenal diverticulum. Surgery is considered for the treatment of severe or repeated symptoms in patients with this condition.

Case presentation

An 81-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital, complaining of general fatigue, BT 38.8 degree, and right hypochondoralgia. Her hepatobiliary enzyme levels were elevated, and enhanced abdominal computed tomography revealed dilation of the common bile duct and intraduodenal diverticulum. After restarting oral intake, her symptoms were exacerbated. Endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP) revealed pancreaticobiliary maljunction and parapapillary diverticulum. Under a diagnosis of Lemmel syndrome with pancreaticobiliary maljunction complicated by acute pancreatitis and cholangitis, we performed extrahepatic bile duct resection with cholecystectomy and papilloplasty. Her postoperative course was uneventful, and the patient was discharged 20 days after surgery. She remains well at 5 months after surgery.

Conclusion

We herein report a successfully diagnosed and treated case of Lemmel syndrome with pancreaticobiliary maljunction.

Recurrent ascending cholangitis with acute pancreatitis and pancreatic atrophy caused by a juxtapapillary duodenal diverticulum: A case report and literature review

RATIONALE

Intermittent combined pancreaticobiliary obstruction may lead to multiple episodes of ascending cholangitis and pancreatitis, usually due to choledocholithiasis or periampullary mass. However, one of the rare causes is periampullary or juxtapapillary duodenal diverticulum. Although duodenal diverticula are relatively common in the general population, the overwhelming majority are asymptomatic. Duodenal diverticula can cause combined pancreaticobiliary obstruction through multiple mechanisms such as stasis-induced primary choledocholithiasis, stasis-induced intradiverticular enterolith, or longstanding diverticulitis, causing stenosing fibrosing papillitis or a combination of more than one of these mechanisms. Herein, I report a case of Lemmel syndrome due to a combination of multiple mechanisms and review the available literature on the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentation, diagnostic work-up, and management of juxtapapillary duodenal diverticulum.

PATIENT CONCERNS

Multiple episodes of abdominal pain, jaundice, anorexia, fever, and significant unintentional weight loss.

DIAGNOSES AND INTERVENTIONS

Primary choledocholithiasis, recurrent ascending cholangitis, recurrent acute pancreatitis, and pancreatic atrophy due to giant juxtapapillary duodenal diverticulum, with unsuccessful endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography that was completely resolved after open transduodenal sphincteroplasty and septoplasty, transampullary and transcystic common bile duct exploration and stone extraction, and duodenal diverticular inversion.

OUTCOME

Complete resolution of combined pancreaticobiliary obstruction without recurrence for 2 years after surgery.

LESSONS

Surgeons should be aware of such rare syndromes to avoid misdiagnosis and delayed or inappropriate management. Furthermore, they should understand the different available operative options for cases that are refractory to endoscopic approach.

Common bile duct obstruction secondary to a periampullary diverticulum

Periampullary duodenal diverticula are not uncommon and are usually asymptomatic although complications may occasionally occur. Here, we report the case of a 72-year-old woman who presented with painless obstructive jaundice. Laboratory tests showed abnormally elevated serum concentrations of total and direct bilirubin, of alkaline phosphatase, of γ-glutamyl transpeptidase, and of aspartate and alanine aminotransferases. Serum concentrations of the tumor markers carbohydrate antigen 19-9 and carcinoembryonic antigen were normal. Abdominal ultrasonography showed dilatation of the common bile duct (CBD), but no gallstones were found either in the gallbladder or in the CBD. The gallbladder wall was normal. Computed tomography failed to detect the cause of CBD obstruction. Magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography revealed a periampullary diverticulum measuring 2 cm in diameter and compressing the CBD. The pancreatic duct was normal. Hypotonic duodenography demonstrated a periampullary diverticulum with a filling defect corresponding to the papilla. CBD compression by the diverticulum was considered as the cause of jaundice. The patient was successfully treated by surgical excision of the diverticulum. In conclusion, the presence of a periampullary diverticulum should be considered in elderly patients presenting with obstructive jaundice in the absence of CBD gallstones or of a tumor mass. Non-interventional imaging studies should be preferred for diagnosis of this condition, and surgical or endoscopic interventions should be used judiciously for the effective and safe treatment of these patients.

Endoscopic manometry of the sphincter of Oddi in patients with Lemmel's syndrome

Endoscopic manometry was performed to evaluate the motor activity of the sphincter of Oddi (OS) in six patients with Lemmel's syndrome, four of whom had acute cholangitis and two of whom had acute pancreatitis. As controls, 24 patients undergoing cholecystectomy without juxtapapillary duodenal diverticula (JPD) for cholelithiasis or cholesterol polyps in the gallbladder were also studied. The OS basal pressure and contraction pressure values were 12.4 +/- 5.1 mmHg and 103.4 +/- 24.3 mmHg, respectively, in the patients with Lemmel's syndrome, and 19.5 +/- 5.1 mmHg and 136.8 +/- 28.2 mmHg, respectively, in the control patients. These differences between the groups were statistically significant; however, the wave frequency was not significantly different between the groups. The mean percentages of antegrade, simultaneous, and retrograde sequences were 37.5% +/- 11.3%, 19.9% +/- 8.7%, and 43.4% +/- 11.7%, respectively, in the patients with Lemmel's syndrome, and 66.5% +/- 11.0%, 20.2% +/- 4.7%, and 14.3% +/- 9.2%, respectively, in the controls. The differences between the groups were significant (P < 0.01) for the antegrade and retrograde sequences. These findings indicate that dysfunction of the OS in patients with Lemmel's syndrome could be important in the development of hepatocholangiopancreatic disease caused by duodenobiliary and duodenopancreatic reflux.

Gallbladder function and recurrent stones of the biliary tract in patients after endoscopic sphincterotomy

BACKGROUND

Change in gallbladder function may occur in patients with an intact gallbladder after endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST). This study was designed to evaluate the factors influencing gallbladder filling after EST and the correlation between gallbladder function and stone recurrence.

METHODS

Sixty Chinese patients with symptomatic choledocholithiasis and an intact gallbladder received EST to clear the bile ducts. They were further investigated with sphincter of Oddi manometry (SOM), quantitative cholescintigraphy (QC), and long-term clinical follow-up.

RESULTS

Fifty-six of the 60 patients in the study group were confirmed to have a loss of sphincteric function by SOM. QC showed normal gallbladder filling in 35 of these patients and delayed or non-filling in 21 patients. A significantly higher incidence of normal gallbladder filling occurred in patients with juxtapapillary diverticulum than in those without (P < 0.02), but preexisting cholecystolithiasis had no effect on it. During the follow-up period (median, 32 months: range, 9-54 months) 10 of 56 patients developed recurrent choledocholithiasis. There was no correlation between the status of gallbladder filling, preexisting cholecystolithiasis, and recurrent stones, but 9 of the 10 patients with recurrent stones had a juxtapapillary diverticulum. Repeated endoscopic treatment was satisfactory in eight patients, and only two patients received cholecystectomy.

CONCLUSIONS

EST does not alter gallbladder function in most patients. Juxtapapillary diverticulum may facilitate gallbladder filling after EST, but it is also a possible factor for recurrent choledocholithiasis.

Cherry stalk in the common bile duct

Ingested biliary foreign bodies occur most frequently in patients who have had previous biliary operations, which predisposes them to enterobiliary reflux. This report describes an unusual ingested foreign body of the common bile duct in a patient with no history of previous gastrointestinal surgery.