Incidence and outcome of biliary strictures after pancreaticoduodenectomy.

OBJECTIVE

This single-institution review examined the incidence of biliary stricture formation after pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) for benign and malignant periampullary disease.

BACKGROUND

The incidence and course of stricture of the hepaticojejunostomy have not been documented after PD.

METHODS

Between January 1995 and April 2003, 1595 patients underwent PD for periampullary disease (392 benign, 1203 malignant). A retrospective analysis of a prospectively collected database was performed to determine the incidence of biliary stricture after PD.

RESULTS

Forty-two of the 1595 patients (2.6%) who underwent PD developed postoperative jaundice secondary to a stricture of the biliary-enteric anastomosis. There was no difference in the incidence of biliary strictures after resection for benign (n = 10, 2.6%) or malignant disease (n = 32, 2.6%). The median time to stricture formation resulting in jaundice was 13 months (range, 1-106 months) and was similar for patients with benign and malignant disease. Preoperative jaundice did not protect against biliary stricture formation. By univariate analysis, biliary strictures were associated with preoperative percutaneous biliary drainage (odds ratio [OR] = 2.11, P = 0.02) and postoperative biliary stenting (OR = 2.11, P = 0.013). Postoperative chemoradiotherapy in patients with malignant disease was not associated with stricture formation. All strictures were initially managed with percutaneous biliary balloon dilatation and stenting, and only 2 patients required redo hepaticojejunostomy. Recurrent neoplastic disease was discovered in only 3 of the 32 patients (9%) with malignant disease. All 3 of these patients had cholangiocarcinoma as their initial diagnosis.

CONCLUSIONS

Biliary stricture formation is an infrequent complication after PD and can be managed successfully with percutaneous biliary dilatation and short-term stenting in most patients. The only significant univariate predictors for biliary stricture formation were preoperative and postoperative percutaneous biliary drainage. The development of a biliary stricture in patients who have undergone PD for malignant disease is usually benign and should not be automatically attributed to anastomotic tumor recurrence.