Minimal Risk of Biliary Tract Complications, Including Hepatic Abscess, After Transarterial Embolization for Hepatocellular Carcinoma Using Concentrated Antibiotics Mixed with Particles.

PURPOSE: To assess the incidence of biliary complications, cholecystitis, and abscess formation in HCC patients following transarterial embolization (TAE) using particles mixed with concentrated antibiotics.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

Retrospective review of HCC patients treated with embolization over a 10-year period revealed 499 procedures in 257 patients. TAE was performed with particles mixed with concentrated antibiotics in addition to IV antibiotics. All follow-up imaging after treatment was retrospectively reviewed for the development of bilomas, biliary strictures, acute cholecystitis, and hepatic abscess. Clinical notes and laboratory tests were also reviewed.

RESULTS

Mean follow-up duration was 18.2 months. In total, there was one biliary complication consisting of biloma formation. This patient had subsegmental hepatic infarction identified on imaging 8 days post-embolization in the setting of subsegmental portal vein thrombus, with subsequent biloma development. There were no cases of new biliary strictures in the embolized portion of the liver at any point after treatment. One patient developed acute gangrenous cholecystitis 10 days post-procedure. No patients developed a hepatic abscess, although 10 patients had bilioenteric anastomoses or incompetent sphincters of Oddi.

CONCLUSIONS

Biliary complications and cholecystitis occurred extremely rarely after TAE, at a markedly lower rate than historical data on TACE. Despite significant risk factors for abscess formation in 10 patients, TAE with particles mixed with concentrated antibiotics resulted in zero abscesses, in contrast to a very high rate after TACE in the literature.