Bile Duct Surgery

Livers synthesizes and secretes bile that plays an important role in digestive processes. The bile is stored in the gallbladder. The duct that carries bile to and from the gallbladder is termed as the cystic duct. The duct that carries the bile from the liver is known as the hepatic duct. At a point, the hepatic duct and cystic duct unite to form common bile duct which drains bile in the liver.

Which Conditions Require Bile Duct Surgery?

Various conditions require bile duct surgery. However, the requirement of surgery depends upon the severity of disease and response of the patient to non-invasive treatment options. These conditions include:

Hepatobiliary cancer: Bile duct surgery is required in cancer of liver and bile duct along with other options such as chemotherapy.

Gallbladder cancer: When there is cancer in the gallbladder, in some case, resection of bile duct is required.

Biliary stricture: When the common bile duct gets narrowed, a condition known as a biliary stricture, bile duct surgery is required.

Bile duct stone: Bile duct stone may either formed in the bile duct or travel from the gallbladder. In some cases of bile stones, surgery is required.

Choledochal cyst: The cysts in the bile duct are present right from the birth and patient experiences pain. As these cysts may develop into cancer, surgery is required to remove them.

What Are The Symptoms Of Bile Duct Stone?

Bile duct stone, also known as choledocholithiasis, following are some of the symptoms of Bile duct stone:

• Jaundice
• Clay-colored stool
• Fever and chills
• Itching
• Fatigue
• Weight loss
• Loss of appetite
• Night Sweats

What Are The Treatment Options For Bile Duct Stone?

The treatment primarily focusses on the removal of stone and clearing the blockage. Various treatment options are available for bile duct stone treatment. These includes:

Biliary endoscopic sphincterotomy (BES): In this procedure, the stone is extracted by inserting a device in the bile duct.

Lithotripsy: Through this procedure, the stones are broken into small fragments so that they can easily pass.

Biliary stenting: Biliary stent is placed in the bile duct to dilate the duct.

Surgery: removal of stones with gallbladder, can be done with laparoscopic method also

What Is Biliary Stricture?

Biliary stricture is a condition of abnormally narrowing of the bile duct. At the initial stage, the condition does not show any visible symptoms however, symptoms start appears as the condition progresses. Causes of a biliary stricture include cancer in the bile duct, injury, pancreatitis, and infection of the bile ducts.

How Biliary Stricture Is Treated?

Two most common procedures for treating biliary stricture is:

PTHC (Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography): In this procedure, a catheter is inserted in the biliary tree through the liver, that helps to keep open the structure.

ERCP (endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography): In this procedure, a biliary stent is inserted to keep open the biliary stricture.

What Is Cholangiocarcinoma?

Cholangiocarcinoma is cancer that develops in the connective tissues of the bile duct. It is divided into three types based on its position. These are Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, Hilar cholangiocarcinoma, and Distal cholangiocarcinoma.

How Cholangiosarcoma Is Treated?

Various treatment options, both invasive and non-invasive are available for treating cholangiocarcinoma.

• Surgery
• Chemotherapy
• Radiotherapy
• Biliary drainage
• Photodynamic therapy