Liver segment IV hypoplasia as a risk factor for bile duct injury

Bile duct injury remains constant in the era of laparoscopic cholecystectomy and misidentification of structures remains one of the most common causes of such injuries. Abnormalities in liver segment IV, which is fully visible during laparoscopic cholecystectomy, may contribute to misidentification as proposed herein.

We describe the case of a 36-year-old female who had a bile duct injury during a laparoscopic cholecystectomy where the surgeon noticed an unusually small distance between the gallbladder and the round ligament.

We define hypoplasia of liver segment IV as well as describe the variation of the biliary anatomy in the case. We also intend to fit it in a broader spectrum of developmental anomalies that have both hyopoplasia of some portion of the liver and variations in gallbladder and bile duct anatomy that may contribute to bile duct injury.

To our knowledge, hypoplasia of liver segment IV has not been suggested in the literature as a risk factor for bile duct injury except in the extreme case of a left-sided gallbladder. Surgeons should be vigilant during laparoscopic cholecystectomy when they become aware of an unusually small distance between the gallbladder bed and the round ligament prior to beginning their dissection, variations in the common bile duct and cystic duct should be expected.