Diagnostic performance of the current risk-stratified approach with computed tomography for suspected choledocholithiasis and its options when negative finding

Abstract

BackgroundSeveral studies evaluated the current guideline of the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and reported only suboptimal accuracy. This study evaluated the diagnostic performance of the ASGE guideline based on computed tomography (CT) and role of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) and magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) in patients with suspected choledocholithiasis but negative CT finding. MethodsPatients with suspected choledocholithiasis undergoing ERCP between January 2016 and January 2017 were retrospectively analyzed. All patients underwent CT to detect choledocholithiasis. EUS or MRCP was performed when the CT scan showed negative findings. Patients were classified into the high and intermediate-risk groups, based on predictors from the ASGE criteria. ResultsOf 583 patients with suspected choledocholithiasis, 340 (58.3%) had stones on ERCP (65.9% in the high-risk group and 40.6% in the intermediate-risk group). The accuracy of ASGE guideline for CT was 63.98% (79.12% sensitivity, 42.80% specificity) and 36.02% (20.88% sensitivity, 57.20% specificity) in the high-risk and intermediate-risk groups, respectively. In 103 patients in the high-risk group underwent both CT and US, the accuracy of CT was higher than that of US for detecting choledocholithiasis (78.64% vs. 53.40%), with a significant difference in area under the curve (AUC) (0.78 vs. 0.59, P < 0.001). Of 339 with negative CT finding, the accuracy of EUS was higher than that of MRCP (90.91% vs. 82.76%), but with no significant difference in AUC (0.91 vs. 0.83, P = 0.347). ConclusionsCT-based ASGE guideline showed superior diagnostic performance than US for predicting choledocholithiasis. The diagnostic options, EUS or MRCP, with negative CT finding showed comparable performance. Therefore, the diagnostic modality should be selected based on availability, experience, cost, and contraindications.