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Updated: Jan 10, 2026

Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Biliary Drainage: Endoscopic Ultrasound-Guided Hepaticogastrostomy in Malignant Biliary Obstruction
Published on: March 25, 2022
EUS-Guided Versus Percutaneous Transhepatic Drainage of Liver Abscesses: A Multicenter Endohepatology Study in
Takeshi Ogura1,2,3, Taira Kuroda4, Takanori Matsuura5
1Pancreatobiliary Advanced Medical Center, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University Hospital, Osaka, Japan.
Objective:
Percutaneous transhepatic liver abscess drainage (PTAD) and endoscopic ultrasound-guided liver abscess drainage (EUS-LAD) have several limitations. Recently, because of technical improvements in echoendoscope maneuvers, EUS-guided access for the right hepatic lobe has been reported. The aim of this multicenter, retrospective study was to compare clinical outcomes of PTAD and EUS-LAD including the right hepatic lobe in West Japan.
Method:
This retrospective, multicenter study included consecutive patients with liver abscesses between January 2019 and November 2024. The primary outcome in this study was the clinical success rate compared between EUS-LAD and PTAD.
Results:
During the study period, 1012 consecutive patients developed liver abscesses. Of them, 734 patients were excluded, 43 underwent EUS-LAD and 235 patients underwent PTAD. After propensity score-matched analysis, the clinical success rate was significantly higher in the EUS-LAD group (97.7%, 42/43) than in the PTAD group (79.1%, 34/43) (p = 0.007). After a propensity score-matched analysis, 25 patients were included in each group. The clinical success rate was significantly higher in the EUS-LAD group (100%, 25/25) than in the PTAD group (84%, 21/25) (p = 0.037). Adverse events were also significantly higher in the PTAD group (16%, 5/25) than in the EUS-LAD group (p = 0.025). In addition, the median length of hospital stay was significantly shorter in the EUS-LAD group (15 days) than in the PTAD group (22 days) (p = 0.005).
Conclusions:
EUS-LAD using a metal stent might be one of the options, but further randomized, controlled trials are needed.

