Gut perforation caused by biliary endoprosthesis.

Two cases are reported of perforation of the gut caused by biliary endoprosthesies in the three-year period 1993-1995. The first patient was an 81-year-old man who had perforation of the terminal ileum caused by a straight 10 French/7 cm stent which had been dislodged from the bile duct; he underwent laparotomy but did not recover. The second patient was an 86-year-old man who had perforation of the sigmoid colon caused by a straight 7 French/5 cm stent left in the duodenum during a stent exchange procedure; he was successfully treated laparoscopically. Two cases of gut perforation in a three-year period is a rather high rate of this rare complication of placement of biliary endoprostheses.