Benign biliary strictures (BBS) may complicate biliary surgery including liver transplantation (LT) [1]. The firstline management of BBS, including anastomotic strictures after LT, now incorporates endoscopic therapy, mostly consisting of stenting [2]. Although originally designed for endoscopic palliation of malignant biliary strictures, the self-expandable metallic stent (SEMS) is a valid alternative to surgery for BBS. Patients with malignant biliary strictures who undergo treatment with metal stents have a limited life expectancy due to the poor prognosis of the underlying disease. Therefore, for patients with BBS who have a normal life expectancy, the indications for metal stent placement should differ from those applied to malignant biliary strictures. Metal stents can be divided into uncovered SEMS, partially covered SEMS, and fully covered SEMS (FCSEMS). Non-removable uncovered SEMS cannot be used for BBS due to their limited patency, since reactive hyperplastic tissue may extend through the metal mesh. Partially covered SEMS can be used for BBS to decrease the rate of stent migration; however, the uncovered portion can embed in the bile duct wall. FCSEMS are a good first choice because of their easy removal and long duration of patency due to lack of tissue hyperplasia and implantation into the biliary tree. Since frequent spontaneous stent migration is a major adverse event associated with FCSEMS, an anchoring system such as flared ends or anchoring fins has been developed [3]. In this issue of Digestive Diseases and Sciences, Kahaleh’s group reports the retrospectively analyzed outcomes of covered SEMS for 55 patients with anastomotic strictures after LT [4]. Twenty-seven of 55 (49.1 %) patients were treated with plastic stents prior to covered SEMS. The authors applied three different types of covered SEMS: partially covered SEMS (19 patients), FCSEMS with anchoring fins (21 patients), and FCSEMS with flared ends (15 patients). Endoscopic biliary sphincterotomy was performed in all patients. Although the authors endeavored to center the stent within the stricture, success was not universal. All covered SEMS were removed after 3–4 months. The technical success rate was 100 %, but the clinical success rate, as measured by stricture resolution, was unsatisfactory (60–74 %). Even after covered SEMS placement, three (5.5 %) patients eventually required surgery to resolve their biliary strictures. Notably, the stentrelated adverse event rate involving migration and occlusion was 7–24 %. Five patients with early stent occlusion required repeat stenting. Indeed, the clinical success rate of endoscopic stenting with multiple plastic stents is reportedly 87–94 % [5]. The location of the stricture is usually the most proximal aspect of the common hepatic duct in anastomotic strictures after LT, especially after living-related LT recipients, in whom the strictured segment is usually short. To achieve effective stenting with covered SEMS, the stent should be centered within the strictured bile duct segment, which might be difficult to achieve in this clinical setting. Stenting with conventional covered SEMS distal to the stricture of the recipient’s native common bile duct can abruptly stretch the duct due to the high radial force developed J. H. Moon Department of Internal Medicine, Digestive Disease Center and Research Institute, Soonchunhyang University School of Medicine, Bucheon/Seoul, Korea