Objective To observe prospectively the role of endoscopic diagnosis and treatment of biliary leakages in patients with liver transplantation, and the incidence of bile duct stricture after healing of the leakage. Methods Six eases of T-tube leakage and seven cases of anastomosis leakage complicating liver transplantation were enrolled in this prospective study. Six patients treated by endoscopic plastic stent placement , 2 by naso-biliary catheter drainage, 2 by papillosphincterotomy and 3 by naso-biliary catheter drainage combined with plastic stent placement. Some patients received growth hormone treatment. Results The bile leak resolution time was between 10-35 days in 10 patients with complete document. The median time of leak resolution was 15. 3 days. Four cases of anastomosis stricture, three cases of common hepatic duct and one ease of multiple bile duct stenosis were observed by followed-up nasobiliary catheter cholangiography or ER-CP. Conclusion Endoscopic nasobiliary catheter or plastic stent placement is a safe and effective treatment for bile duct stricture occurred after bile leak resolution in most of liver transplantation patients. Naso-biliary catheter combined with plastic stent placement maybe the best choice for treating bile leak, because, theoretically, it may prevent serious condition happened at accidental nasobiliary catheter dislocation, and it may have prophylactic effect on upcoming bile duct stricture and should be further confirmed.

To study the manifestations of endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) in patients of obstructive jaundice associated with HCC, 32 cases of histopathologically diagnosed HCC with obstructive jaundice were successfully examined with routine ERCP. 31 patients were demonstrated by ERCP as having malignant obstructive jaundice. Among them, 19 were hepatic perihilar bile duct stricture, 7 bile ductile tumorous thrombus, 3 perihilar bile duct stricture complicated with thrombus, 2 metastasis to hilar lymph node, and 1 common bile duct stone as proven by sphincterotomy. The malignant perihilar stricture was all of type III and IV by Bismuth standard of Klastin tumor. In patients identified as having bile duct tumor thrombus, by the Ueda classification, none was of type I and II; 1 type III a; 4 III b; 2 type IV. HCC with obstructive jaundice was mainly caused by the malignant infiltration of tumor, and most stricture was of serious nature. When major extra-hepatic bile duct was involved by tumor thrombus, obstructive jaundice might develop. Malignant perihilar stricture and tumor thrombus might coexist in some patients. Jaundice was rarely caused by hepatic hilar lymph node metastasis. Jaundice was not necessarily caused by tumors and sometimes, it might be caused by common bile stones. Care should be exercised in differentiation diagnosis in such patients.
Adult ; Aged ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; complications ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde ; Female ; Humans ; Jaundice, Obstructive ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Liver Neoplasms ; complications ; diagnosis ; pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged