Efficacy of plastic tube stents without side holes for middle and lower biliary strictures.

Background: Although biliary expandable metallic stents (EMS) improve patency, they are unsuitable for primary biliary stenting. Although plastic tube stents without side holes (PWOS) are also reported to prolong patency, their efficacy remains controversial.

Goals: To evaluate clinical utility and relative advantages, we reviewed clinical results of three types of stents: plastic tube stents with side holes (PS), PWOS, and EMS.