Operative injuries to the bile ducts. Report on 12 cases.

We have reported on a series of 12 operative injuries to the bile ducts. We estimate the frequency of these accidents at 0.2% during cholecystectomy and 0.4% after gastroduodenectomy. We stress the importance of systematic cholangiography during the operation to prevent unrecognized lesions. Immediate repair of these lesions by an end-to-end anastomosis appears to be the best technical method. When faced with a high mortality rate, often due to non-recognition of a lesion, we stress the importance of prevention to limit the risk of such accidents occurring and non-recognition of those that do occur.