Percutaneous balloon dilatation and long-term drainage as treatment of anastomotic and nonanastomotic benign biliary strictures.

Purpose: This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of percutaneous balloon dilation and long-term drainage of postoperative benign biliary strictures.

Methods: Medical records of patients with postoperative benign biliary strictures, in whom percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD) and balloon dilation was performed between January 1999 and December 2011, were retrospectively reviewed. PTBD and balloon dilation (4-10 mm) were followed by placement of internal-external biliary drainage catheters (8.5-12 F). Patients were scheduled for elective tube changes, if necessary combined with repeated balloon dilation of the stenosis, at 3-week intervals up to a minimum of 3 months.

Results: Ninety-eight patients received a total of 134 treatments. The treatment was considered technically successful in 98.5%. Drainage catheters were left in with a median duration of 14 weeks. Complications occurred in 11 patients. In 13 patients, percutaneous treatment was converted to surgical intervention. Of 85 patients in whom percutaneous treatment was completed, 11.8% developed clinically relevant restenosis. Median follow-up was 35 months. Probability of patency at 1, 2, 5, and 10 years was 0.95, 0.92, 0.88, and 0.72, respectively. Overall, 76.5% had successful management with PTBD. Restenosis and treatment failure occurred more often in patients who underwent multiple treatments. Treatments failed more often in patients with multiple strictures. All blood markers of liver function significantly decreased to normal values.

Conclusions: Percutaneous balloon dilation and long-term drainage demonstrate good short- and long-term effectiveness as treatment for postoperative benign biliary strictures with an acceptably low complication rate and therefore are indicated as treatment of choice.