Double common bile duct: a case report

The aim of our study is to present a case of double common bile duct. Specifically, we found a common bile duct that was divided into two distinct ducts, one the main and the other the accessory duct, during its course downwards. The two bile ducts had a parallel course emerging from the common bile duct after its formation and reuniting just above the head of the pancreas. Finally, they drained into the second portion of the duodenum at the site of major duodenal papilla. This anomaly is of great importance because the duplication of the common bile duct can lead to severe intraoperative injury to one of the two common bile ducts, which can be mistaken for the cystic duct and be ligated. Moreover, we present the relative international literature and the clinical significance of our finding.