Long-term results of surgical repair of bile duct injuries following laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

BACKGROUND: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is associated with an increased incidence of bile duct injuries when compared with the open surgical technique. Long-term results of repaired injuries and hepatic damage associated with chronic biliary obstruction are lacking.

METHODS: From Aug 1, 1991 until Dec 1, 1999, there were 27 patients referred for management of complex biliary injuries that occurred during LC. Patients underwent percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography and placement of transhepatic catheters with computed tomography-guided biloma drainage when indicated. On the basis of the cholangiography findings, patients underwent Roux-en-Y hepaticojejunostomy (HJ) and liver biopsy or were treated with nonsurgical interventions.

RESULTS: Twenty-one of 27 patients (77. 8%) underwent HJ, and 16 of these 21 patients (76.2%) also underwent hepatic biopsy. In 1 patient, a recurrent stricture developed at 20 months after the initial repair; and, in a second patient, an episode of cholangitis developed in the postoperative period with the transhepatic catheters in place. Five of 16 patients (31.2%) demonstrated marked hepatic fibrosis with 4 (25%) of these patients showing evidence of evolving cirrhosis at the time of HJ.

CONCLUSIONS: In this series with 55 months of follow-up, HJ repair of LC injuries was associated with an initial 95.2% success rate and an ultimate success rate of 100%. Despite this, delayed referral, averaging 12 months, was associated with significant hepatic injury in 5 of 16 (31.3%) patients who underwent biopsy.