Clinical Outcome of Internal Stent for Biliary Anastomosis in Liver Transplantation.

Abstract

Introduction. This study analyzed the incidence and management of biliary complications after liver transplantation (LT) with internal stent or without stent. Method. The medical record of all patients who underwent LT and were hospitalized between December, 2009 and March, 2013 were reviewed. All patients were grouped into two groups (internal stent group vs no stent group). Result. There were 29 deceased donor liver transplantation (58%) and 21 living donor liver transplantation (42%). There were 2 perioperative mortalities, and these 2 patients were excluded for this study. The overall biliary complication rate was 6.45% in the internal stent group and 17.65% in the no stent group. The rate of anastomotic stricture was 3.23% (n=1) in the stent group and 11.76% (n=2) in the no stent group. The rate of bile leak in the stent group was 3.23% (n=1), in contrast, bile leak never occurred in the no stent group. The rate of biliary obstruction was 0% in the stent group and 5.88% (n=1) in the no stent group. Conclusion. The overall rate of biliary complication in the internal stent group was lower than in the no stent group and most of the biliary complications can be treated successfully with endoscopic or radiologic intervention.