Clinical efficacy, timing, and outcomes of ERCP for management of bile duct leaks: a nationwide cohort study

[Endoscopic management of complications in the hepatobiliary and pancreatic system and the tracheobronchial tree]

Endoscopic methods are nowadays a priceless tool for the treatment of postoperative complications after hepatobiliary, pancreatic and thoracic surgery. Endoscopic decompression of the biliary tract is the treatment of choice for biliary duct leakage after cholecystectomy, hepatic resection or liver transplantation. Postoperative biliary duct stenosis can also be successfully treated by endoscopic balloon dilatation and implantation of various endoprostheses in most of the patients. In the case of pancreatic fistulas, especially those occurring after central or distal pancreatic resections, endoscopic decompression of the pancreatic duct can significantly contribute to rapid healing. Additionally, interventional endosonography provides a valuable treatment option for transgastric drainage of postoperative fluid collections, which often accompany a pancreatic fistula. Various treatment alternatives have been described for the bronchoscopic treatment of bronchopleural and tracheoesophageal fistulas, which often lead to the rapid alleviation of symptoms and often to the definitive closure of the fistula.

Hepaticojejunostomy for bile duct injury: state of the art

BACKGROUND

Hepaticojejunostomy (HJ) is the gold standard procedure for the reconstruction of the bile duct in many benign and malignant situations. One of the major situation is the bile duct injury (BDI) after cholecystectomy, either for early or late repair. This procedure presents some specificities associated to a debated management of BDI.

PURPOSE

This article provides a state-of-the-art of the hepaticojejunostomy procedure focusing on bile duct injury including its indications and outcomes CONCLUSION: Performed at the right moment and respecting the technical rules, HJ provides a restoration of the biliary patency in the long term of 80 to 90%. It is the main surgical technique to repair BDI. Complications and failure of this procedure can be difficult to manage. That is why the primary repair requires an appropriate multidisciplinary approach associated with an expert high quality surgical technique.

A critical appraisal of the ISGLS definition of biliary leakage after liver resection

PURPOSE

The International Study Group of Liver Surgery (ISGLS) defined post-hepatectomy biliary leakage as drain/serum bilirubin ratio > 3 at day 3 or the interventional/surgical revision due to biliary peritonitis. We investigated the definition's applicability.

METHODS

A retrospective evaluation of all liver resections over a 6-year period was performed. ROC analyses were performed for drain/serum bilirubin ratios on days 1, 2, and 3 including grade A to C (analysis I) and grade B and C biliary leakages (analysis II) to test specific cutoff values.

RESULTS

A total of 576 patients were included. One hundred nine (18.9%) postoperative bile leakages occurred (19.6% of the whole population grade A, 16.5% grade B/C). Areas under the curve (AUC) for analysis I were 0.841 (day 1), 0.846 (day 2), and 0.734 (day 3). The highest sensitivity (78% on day 1/77% on day 2) and specificity (78% on day 1/79% on day 2) in analysis I were obtained for a drain/serum bilirubin ratio of 2.0. AUCs for analysis II were similar: 0.788 (day 1), 0.791 (day 2), and 0.650 (day 3). The highest sensitivity (73% on day 1/71% on day 2) and specificity (74% on day 1/76% on day 2) in analysis II were detected for a drain/serum bilirubin ratio of 2.0 on postoperative day 2.

CONCLUSION

Biliary leakages should be defined if the drain/serum bilirubin ratio is > 2.0 on postoperative day 2.