Obesity and Risk for Incomplete Stone Clearance in Patients with Bile Duct Stones Undergoing ERCP.

Abstract

Obesity degrades fluoroscopic image quality and could impact on the endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) outcomes. Our study aimed to compare the clinical outcomes and adverse events (AEs) between obese and non-obese patients undergoing ERCP for biliary stone-related conditions. Patients who underwent ERCP for biliary-stone related conditions were included. The analyzed outcomes included the rates of successful bile duct cannulation, incomplete bile duct stone clearance, recurrent bile duct stones, and AEs. A total of 229 patients (116 obese patients and 113 non-obese patients) were included. All patients had successful bile duct cannulation. The rates of incomplete bile duct stone clearance (11.3% vs. 9.0%, P = 0.51), recurrent bile duct stones (1.9% vs. 4.2%, P = 0.24), and AEs (1.8% vs. 0.7%, P = 0.43) were not significantly different between the two groups, respectively. Our study demonstrates no associations between obesity and the rates of incomplete stone clearance, recurrent stones, successful cannulation, or AEs in patients undergoing ERCP for biliary stone-related disease.