Frequency of Common Bile Duct Dilatation After Cholecystectomy for Chronic Cholecystitis

AbstractIntroduction: Although the common bile duct (CBD) is generally believed to dilate after surgery, postcholecystectomy dilatation of the common duct continues to be a matter of controversy in the surgical, radiographic, and sonographic literature. The introduction of intravenous cholangiography enabled the direct measurement of the common bile duct. Prospective studies using sonography to measure the common duct have shown that, although most patients did not experience a significant increase in duct diameter after cholecystectomy, there was a trend toward minor duct dilatation. Objective: To determine the frequency of common bile duct dilatation after cholecystectomy for chronic cholecystitis. Study Duration: From 4 September 2020 to 5 March 2021. Study Design: Descriptive study Study setting: Surgery Department, Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar. Materials and Methods: A total of 139 patients subjected to cholecystectomy were included in the study and followed up to determine the frequency of common bile duct dilatation. Results: The mean age of the whole study sample was 38.6 + 10.3 years. In our study, we had 55.4% male and 44.6% females. Mean BMI of the sample was 25 + 2.3kg/m2. Mean duration of cholecystitis was 3.6 + 1.5 months. 54.7% belonged to ASA class II, and 59.7% were subjected to LC. Mean baseline CBD diameter on US was 1.3 + 0.1mm while the mean follow-up CBD diameter was 1.8 + 0.2mm (p < 0.001). As per operational definitions, CBD dilatation was recorded in 23% of patients. Conclusion: CBD dilatation after cholecystectomy is highly common in our patients; however, not significantly associated with gender, age, type of cholecystectomy or baseline diameter of CBD. Further studies are recommended on the relationship between CBD dilatation and its outcome among patients after cholecystectomy. Moreover, more studies should be conducted on the Identification of preventive measures to be adopted for controlling dilatation of the CBD after cholecystectomy Key Words: Cholecystectomy, cholecystitis, common bile duct dilatation, body mass index.