PERCUTANEOUS ENDOSCOPIC POLYPECTOMY OF GALLBLADDER POLYPS

We report here our preliminary experience with percutaneous endoscopic polypectomy of gallbladder polyps. Five patients with a total of 17 c holesterol polyps (size: 4-6 mm) and one patient with two gallbladder adenomas (size: 5 mm), four of whom were symptomatic and all of whom r efused cholecystectomy, underwent a single-stage procedure under epidu ral anesthesia. All patients had functioning gallbladders, as assessed by oral cholecystography after stimulation. Following a small incisio n, the gallbladder was pulled out of the abdominal wall, incised, and a cholecystoscope introduced. The polyps were coagulated at their stal k using microwave irradiation (70-80 mA, 9 sec) and removed for histop athological evaluation thereafter. A catheter was left in situ for ten days. Follow-up for a mean of 11.6 months (8-16 months) showed all pa tients to be symptom-free and without recurrence of polyps on ultrason ography. Gallbladder function was assessed in five cases by meal-stimu lated oral cholecystography, and in one by hepato-iminodiacetate acid (HIDA) scan and was found to be well preserved. The preliminary result s warrant further evaluation of this method of removing indeterminate gallbladder polyps.