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Early percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage compared with endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and papillotomy treatment for severe gallstone associated acute pancreatitis

Research Institute of General Surgery, Jinling Hospital, Medical College of Nanjing University, Nanjing, People’s Republic of China

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Professor Weiqin Li
Research Institute of General Surgery, Jinling Hospital, 305 East Zhongshan Rd, Nanjing, 210002, Jiangsu Province, China; yudrnj{at}hotmail.com

Objective: Percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGD) was compared with endoscopic treatment (within 72 hours after the onset of symptoms) in patients with severe biliary pancreatitis to evaluate the curative effect of PTGD in preventing bile track complications in these patients.

Methods: Eligible patients were randomised to receive early treatment with PTGD or endoscopic treatment. If the initial emergency endoscopic or PTGD treatment failed, patients received another drainage treatment within 24 hours. From November 2001 to August 2005, 101 patients were randomly assigned to early PTGD (n = 51) or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) (n = 50). Overall mortality, mortality due to pancreatitis and complications were compared in these two groups.

Results: 48 of 52 patients were successfully treated with ERCP and 53 of 55 with PTGD. Seven patients (6.9%; three in the endoscopic treatment group and four in the PTGD group) died within four months after the onset of pancreatitis (p = 0.798); three patients in the endoscopic group and three in the PTGD group died from acute biliary pancreatitis. The overall rate of complications was similar in the two groups and there were no major differences in the incidence of local or systemic complications.

Conclusions: PTGD treatment is a simple, convenient and effective treatment of severe gallstone associated acute pancreatitis when endoscopic treatment fails.

Abbreviations: ERCP, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography; GAP, gallstone associated acute pancreatitis; PTGD, percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage