Bile-duct cysts--diagnosis and treatment in 14 patients

Between 1978 and 1982 14 patients were treated for bile-duct cysts. The predominant clinical signs were obstructive jaundice and hepatomegaly in the younger patients, while pain was the most common symptom in the older patients. Ultrasonography was a valuable diagnostic technic but percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography (PTC) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) were associated with septic complications; as an alternative, routine preoperative cholangiography is recommended to visualize the type of bile-duct cyst. Excision of the bile-duct cyst was considered the treatment of choice. Excision was performed in 11, and internal drainage in three patients. Cholangitis developed in four children after excision of the cyst. In our series the prognosis was good following surgical treatment, even in younger patients.