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Updated: May 21, 2026
Reduced Complications after Arterial Reconnection in a Rat Model of Orthotopic Liver Transplantation
Published on: November 7, 2020
Rubber transcystic drainage reduces the post-removal biliary complications in liver transplantation: a matched
F Panaro1, A Glaise, M Miggino
1Department of General and Liver Transplant Surgery, University of Montpellier, Hôpital Saint Eloi, 80 avenue Augustin Fliche, 34295 Montpellier-Cedex 5, France. f-panaro@chu-montpellier.fr
Purpose:
Bile duct (BD) complications continue to be the "Achilles' heel" of liver transplantation, and the utilization of bile duct drainage is still on debate. We describe the results of a less invasive rubber trancystic biliary drainage (TBD) compared to a standard silicone T-tube (TT).
Methods:
The transplanted patients (n = 248), over a period of 5 years with a TBD (n = 20), were matched 1:2 with control patients with a TT (n = 40). Primary end points were the overall incidence of BD complications and graft and patient survival. Secondary end points included the complications after the drainage removal.
Results:
Although the bile duct leakage rates were not significantly different between both groups, the TT group had a significantly higher rate of overall 1-year BD stenosis (40 versus 10 %) (p = 0.036). Three-year patient/graft survival rates were 83.2/80.1 and 84.4/84.4 % for the TT and TBD groups, respectively. The postoperative BD complications, after drainage removal (peritonitis and stenosis), were significantly reduced (p = 0.011) with the use of a TBD.
Conclusion:
The use of rubber TBD in liver transplant recipients does not increase the number of BD complications compared to the T-tube. Furthermore, less BD anastomotic stenosis and post-removal complications were observed in the TBD group compared to the TT group.