Gallbladder infarction after hepatic artery embolization

Nineteen patients with hepatocellular carcinoma had transcatheter hepatic arterial embolization and subsequent hepatic resection with cholecystectomy. During the angiographic procedure, inadvertent embolization of the cystic artery occurred in 10 patients (53%). Subsequent histologic study of the gallbladder demonstrated necrotizing ulcerative cholecystitis in nine of the 10. All nine patients complained of right-upper-quadrant pain of varying degree after hepatic embolization, but none required special treatment or urgent laparotomy.