Early removal of retained biliary stone without T-tube removal: case report

Techniques for removal of retained common bile duct stones through mature tracts are safe and well established. When symptomatic, the stones may require removal prior to the 4-6 week period required for tract maturation. We report a case in which substituting a Teflon sheath for the standard polyethylene basket sheath allowed manipulation through the T-tube lumen and basketing of an impacted distal common bile duct stone, which had caused pancreatitis. This technique is simple and avoids the problem of loss of access to the biliary tree in the early postoperative period.