Ectopic Opening of Common Bile Duct to Duodenal Bulb: A Single Tertiary Center Experience

BACKGROUND

The ectopic opening of the common bile duct(CBD) into the duodenal bulb is a rare biliary anomaly. The study aimed to reveal the experience with clinical and endoscopic outcomes in these patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study was conducted on 57 consecutive patients who underwent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for ectopic opening of the CBD into the duodenal bulb at our institution between 2010 and 2020.

RESULTS

The median age was 59 years (49 males). A total of 146 ERCP procedures were performed (once in 26 patients and 2 or more times in 31 patients). Ten patients had a history of unsuccessful ERCP in an external center. The median follow-up time was 14.6 months. All patients had a slit-like opening of the CBD into the duodenal bulb, apical stenosis, and hook-shaped distal CBD. ERCP findings were CBD stone or dilatation in 55 patients and post-cholecystectomy biliary leakage in 2 patients. Balloon dilatation was performed for apical stenosis in 7 patients and distal CBD stenosis in 26 patients. During the first ERCP session, biliary stent/nasobiliary drainage was placed in 37 patients, and CBD stones were extracted in 19 patients without stenting. Biliodigestive anastomosis was applied to 13 patients, 5 of whom had recurrent cholangitis, 7 required recurrent ERCP, and one was due to the technical difficulty of ERCP.

CONCLUSIONS

Ectopic biliary opening should be remembered if the papilla cannot be seen in its usual place in a patient with apical stenosis. ERCP should be performed in experienced hands, and surgery should be considered in the need for recurrent ERCP.

The efficacy and tolerability of glecaprevir/pibrentasvir treatment in a real-world chronic hepatitis C patients cohort

Background and Aim

The aims of the present study were to evaluate the real-life efficacy and tolerability of glecaprevir (GLE)/pibrentasvir (PIB) in the treatment of patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC).

Materials and Methods

Between May 2019 and May 2022, 686 patients with CHC, treated with GLE/PIB combination from 21 participating centers in Turkiye, were enrolled in the study.

Results

All patients were Caucasian, and their median age was 56 years. At the start of GLE/PIB treatment, the median serum Hepatitis C virus RNA and serum alanine amino transaminase (ALT) levels were 6.74 log10 IU/mL and 47 U/L, respectively. Fifty-three percent of the patients were infected with genotype 1b, followed by genotype 3 (17%). Diabetes was the more common concomitant disease. The sustained virological response (SVR12) was 91.4% with intent-to-treat analysis and 98.5% with per protocol analysis. The SVR12 rates were statistically significant differences between the patients who were i.v. drug users and non-user (88.0% vs. 98.8%, p=0.025). From the baseline to SVR12, the serum ALT levels and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease score were significantly improved (p<0.001 and p=0.014, respectively). No severe adverse effect was observed.

Conclusion

GLE/PIB is an effective and tolerable treatment in patients with CHC.

Neurological disorders in liver transplantation

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Liver transplantation is the only curative treatment in patients with end-stage liver failure. It has been associated with neurological disorders more frequently than other solid organ transplantations. We aimed to detect neurological disorders in liver transplantation patients and determine those that affect mortality.

METHODS

One hundred eighty-five patients, 105 with and 80 without neurological disorders, were included in this study. The follow-up was categorized into three periods: preoperative, early postoperative and late postoperative. We analyzed all medical records, including demographic, laboratory, radiological, and clinical data.

RESULTS

Neurological disorders were observed in 52 (28.1%) patients in the preoperative period, in 45 (24.3%) in the early postoperative, and in 42 (22.7%) in the late postoperative period. Hepatic encephalopathy in the preoperative and altered mental state in the post-operative period were the most common neurological disorders. Both hepatic encephalopathy (37.5%) and altered mental state (57.7%) caused high mortality (p=0.019 and 0.001) and were determined as indepen-dent risk factors for mortality. Living donor transplantation caused less frequent mental deterioration (p=0.049). The mortality rate (53.8%) was high in patients with seizures (p=0.019). While mortality was 28.6% in Wilson's disease patients with neurological disorders, no death was observed in patients without neurological disorders.

CONCLUSION

We identified a wide variety of neurological disorders in liver transplantation patients. We also demonstrated that serious neurological disorders, including hepatic encephalopathy and seizures, are associated with high morbidity and mortality. Therefore, in order to avoid poor outcomes, hepatic encephalopathy should be considered as a prioritization criterion for liver transplantation.