Delayed endoscopic papillary large balloon dilation after sphincterotomy for removing large bile duct stones in patients with acute cholangitis.

BACKGROUND: Endoscopic papillary large balloon dilation (EPLBD) after an endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST) is an option for endoscopic removal of large common bile duct (CBD) stones. However, risks or fear of severe adverse events remain.

AIMS: Our aim was to compare the safety and efficacy of delayed EPLBD after EST with concurrent EST and EPLBD in patients with acute cholangitis by large CBD stones.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of sixty-eight patients with acute cholangitis from large CBD stones were enrolled in this prospective observational study. Thirty-five patients underwent concurrent EST and EPLBD at the same session (group A). Thirty-three patients underwent only EST at the first session, and EPLBD with stone removal was performed during a second session (group B). The complete stone removal rate and adverse events rate were analyzed.

RESULTS: Both groups resulted in similar outcomes in terms of overall successful stone removal (100% in both groups) and the use of additional lithotripsy (22.9% in group A and 24.2% in group B). Six patients (17.1%) in group A had procedural-related adverse events including one patient with death by perforation, one with significant bleeding, and four with pancreatitis, including one moderate grade. However, there was no procedure-related complication in group B (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Delayed EPLBD after EST may reduce complications associated with EPLBD and extraction of large bile duct stones in patients with acute cholangitis.