[Endoscopic bile duct drainage in malignant obstructive jaundice--an alternative procedure to palliative surgery]

74 patients suffering from malignant bile duct obstruction were treated by endoscopic endoprosthesis placement. Improvement and standardization of the technique resulted in successful decompression in 97% of the cases. Also, the complication rate could be reduced to 6.9% (fatal complications, 4.6%). The mean survival time after decompression was 4.5 months, 25 patients of them being still alive. The endoprosthesis had to be replaced after an average of 2.3 months due to occlusion. The endoscopic bile duct decompression is better than surgical palliation in patients with proximal bile duct obstruction. At present, endoscopic endoprothesis placement can be recommended as an alternative method for the palliation of malignant bile duct obstruction.