Nasobiliary tube management of postcholecystectomy bile leaks

Endobiliary stenting is the traditional form of endoprosthetic drainage for biliary leaks. Nasobiliary tubes offer the advantage of easy removal and interval tube cholangiograms to assess leak resolution.

To determine the efficacy of nasobiliary tube drainage in patients with postcholecystectomy biliary leaks and provide our experience with management of biliary leak using nasobiliary drains.

Retrospective study of 24 patients who were treated for postcholecystectomy biliary leaks in a tertiary referral center from 1998 to 2002. These patients were managed with either nasobiliary tube (NBT) alone or NBT + endoscopic sphincterotomy (ES).

Twenty-four patients (mean age, 57.5 years; 50% women) had postcholecystectomy leak noted on ERCP. Twenty patients were managed by NBT+ES and 4 patients had NBT placement alone. In the NBT+ES group, 2 patients pulled their NBT out, but 18 patients had complete leak resolution in 3 to 9 days. In the NBT group, all patients had complete leak resolution in 4 to 12 days. Using an intention-to-treat analysis, 22 of 24 (92%) patients were successfully treated with NBT treatment over 3 to 12 days.

ERCP with NBT placement is an effective and safe treatment modality in the management of postcholecystectomy biliary leaks.