Successful disintegration, dissolution and drainage of intracholedochal hematoma by percutaneous transhepatic intervention

Abstract

Hemobilia is a rare biliary complication of liver transplantation. The predominant cause of hemobilia is iatrogenic, and it is often associated with traumatic operations, such as percutaneous liver intervention, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, cholecystectomy, biliary tract surgery, and liver transplantation. Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography and liver biopsy are two major causes of hemobilia in liver transplant recipients. Hemobilia may also be caused by coagulation defects. It can form intracholedochal hematomas, causing obstructive jaundice. Herein we describe a patient with an intracholedochal hematoma resulting in significant obstructive jaundice after liver transplantation for fulminant hepatic failure. Previous studies have shown that percutaneous transhepatic manipulation is a major cause of hemobilia after liver transplantation, but in our case, percutaneous transhepatic intervention was used to relieve the biliary obstruction and dissolve the biliary clot, with a good outcome.