Utility of fluorescent cholangiography during laparoscopic cholecystectomy: A systematic review

AIM: To verify the utility of fluorescent cholangiography for more rigorous identification of the extrahepatic biliary system.METHODS: MEDLINE and Pub Med searches were performed using the key words "fluorescent cholangiography", "fluorescent angiography", "intraoperative fluorescent imaging", and "laparoscopic cholecystectomy" in order to identify relevant articles published in English, French, German, and Italian during the years of 2009 to 2014. Reference lists from the articles were reviewed to identify additional pertinent articles. For studies published in languages other than those mentioned above, all available information was collected from their English abstracts. Retrieved manuscripts(case reports, reviews, and abstracts) concerning the application of fluorescent cholangiography were reviewed by the authors, and the data were extracted using a standardized collection tool. Data were subsequently analyzed with descriptive statistics. In contrast to classic meta-analyses, statistical analysis was performed where the outcome was calculated as the percentages of an event(without comparison) in pseudo-cohorts of observed patients.RESULTS: A total of 16 studies were found that involved fluorescent cholangiography during standard laparoscopic cholecystectomies(n = 11), singleincision robotic cholecystectomies(n = 3), multiport robotic cholecystectomy(n = 1), and single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy(n = 1). Overall, these preliminary studies indicated that this novel technique was highly sensitive for the detection of important biliary anatomy and could facilitate the prevention of bile duct injuries. The structures effectively identified before dissection of Calot's triangle included the cystic duct(CD), the common hepatic duct(CHD), the common bile duct(CBD), and the CD-CHD junction. A review of the literature revealed that the frequenciesof detection of the extrahepatic biliary system ranged from 71.4% to 100% for the CD, 33.3% to 100% for the CHD, 50% to 100% for the CBD, and 25% to 100% for the CD-CHD junction. However, the frequency of visualization of the CD and the CBD were reduced in patients with a body mass index > 35 kg/m2 relative to those with a body mass index < 35 kg/m2(91.0% and 64.0% vs 92.3% and 71.8%, respectively).CONCLUSION: Fluorescent cholangiography is a safe procedure enabling real-time visualization of bile duct anatomy and may become standard practice to prevent bile duct injury during laparoscopic cholecystectomy.

Effect of implanting fibrin sealant with ropivacaine on pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy

AIM:To investigate the safety and efficacy of implant-ing fibrin sealant with sustained-release ropivacaine in the gallbladder bed for pain after laparoscopic chole-cystectomy(LC).METHODS:Sixty patients(American Society of Anes-thesiologists physical status wasⅠorⅡand underwent LC)were randomly divided into three equal groups:group A(implantation of fibrin sealant in the gallbladder bed),group B(implantation of fibrin sealant carrying ropivacaine in the gallbladder bed),and group C(normal saline in the gallbladder bed).Postoperative pain was evaluated,and pain relief was assessed by visual analog scale(VAS)scoring.RESULTS:The findings showed that 81.7%of patients had visceral pain,50%experienced parietal,and 26.7% reported shoulder pain after LC.Visceral pain was significantly less in group B patients than in the other groups(P<0.05),and only one patient in this group experienced shoulder pain.The mean VAS score in group B patients was lower than that in the other groups.CONCLUSION:Visceral pain is prominent after LC and can be effectively controlled by implanting fibrin sealant combined with ropivacaine in the gallbladder bed.

Current status of laparoendoscopic rendezvous in the treatment of cholelithiasis with concomitant choledocholithiasis

The current evidence in favor of the laparoendoscopic rendezvous is promising and demonstrates the main advantages of this technique in regard to shorter hospital stay and selective cannulation of the commonbile duct(CBD), avoiding thus the inadvertent cannulation of the pancreatic duct. In addition, in the rendezvous technique the contrast medium is not injected retrogradely as during the traditional endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP), when the medium accidentally could be injected under pressure into the pancreatic duct. The RV technique minimizes that risk. Both these main advantages of the RV technique over the classic ERCP, are related with a significant lower incidence of hyperamylasemia and post-ERCP pancreatitis, compared with the traditional two stage procedure. Choledocholithiasis is present in 10% to 15% of patients undergoing cholecystectomy. To date, the ideal management of CBD stones remains controversial. Prospective randomized trials have shown that laparoscopic management of the CBD stones, as a single stage procedure, is the most efficient and cost effective method of treatment. Laparoendoscopic rendezvous has been proposed as an alternative single stage approach. Several studies have shown the effective use of this technique in the treatment of CBD stones by improving patient compliance and clinical results including shorter hospital stay, higher success rate and less cost. The current evidence about the use of this technique presented in this review article is promising and demonstrates the main advantages of the procedure.

Total laparoscopic removal of accessory gallbladder:A case report and review of literature

Accessory gallbladder is a rare congenital anomaly occurring in 1 in 4000 births, that is not associated with any specific symptoms. Usually this cannot be diagnosed on ultrasonography and hence they are usually not diagnosed preoperatively. Removal of the accessory gallbladder is necessary to avoid recurrence of symptoms. H-type accessory gallbladder is a rare anomaly. Once identified intra-operatively during laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the surgery is usually converted to open. By using the main gallbladder for liver traction and doing a dome down technique for the accessory gallbladder, we were able to perform the double cholecystectomy with intra-operative cholangiogram laparoscopically. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was performed in 27-year-old male for biliary colic. Prior imaging with computer tomography-scan and ultrasound did not show a duplicated gallbladder. Intraoperatively after ligation of cystic artery and duct an additional structure was seen on its medial aspect. Intraoperative cholangiogram confirmed the patency of intra-hepatic and extra-hepatic biliary ducts. Subsequent dissection around this structure revealed a second gallbladder with cystic duct(H-type). Pathological analysis confirmed the presence of two gallbladders with features of chronic cholecystitis. It is important to use cholangiogram to identify structural anomalies and avoid complications.