A. Hawasli et al., THE ROLE OF ENDOSCOPIC RETROGRADE CHOLANGIOPANCREATOGRAM IN LAPAROSCOPIC CHOLECYSTECTOMY, The American surgeon, 59(5), 1993, pp. 285-289
Four hundred and fifty-nine patients were studied to evaluate the role
of diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancrea
ticrogram (ERCP) in their management before laparoscopic cholecystecto
my (LC) when choledocholithiasis is suspected. Using bilirubin, liver
function tests (LFTs) (alkaline phosphatase, SGOT, SGPT) and findings
on ultrasound of a dilated common bile duct (CBD), 37 patients (8.1%)
were suspected of having concomitant common bile duct stones preoperat
ively. These patients were subjected to the following diagnostic and t
herapeutic procedures: 25 ERCPs, 20 laparoscopic cholangiograms, and t
hree extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsies. Preoperative ERCP was do
ne on 1.9 patients, intraoperative ERCP-sphincterotomy was done on one
patient, and postoperative ERCP-sphincterotomy was done on five patie
nts. Fifteen laparoscopic cholangiograms were done as primary tests an
d five after preoperative ERCP. Sixteen patients (3.5%) had stones in
their CBD. Four patients had their laparoscopic cholecystectomy cancel
led, and one patient had laparoscopic common duct exploration that was
converted to an open procedure. Three groups were identified: group I
, patients with a high index of suspicion, included elevated bilirubin
with elevation of all three LFTs, or normal bilirubin with elevation
of all three LFTs with or without dilated CBD. Seventy-five per cent o
f this group had CBD stones. Group II, patients with a low index of su
spicion, included normal bilirubin and normal CBD by ultrasound with e
levation of the alkaline phosphatase alone or elevation of two of the
three LFTs. Six per cent of this group had CBD stones. Group III, pati
ents with no index of suspicion, were patients with normal preoperativ
e laboratory test results and CBD. Two patients (0.47%) in this group
had elevated LFTs postoperatively. Only one of them required ERCP-endo
scopic sphincterotomy and extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy. An alg
orithm was developed after analyzing our results.