Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography with a thin needle. Experience with 25 cases.

Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography with a thin needle was successfully employed in 23 of 25 patients with jaundice. A 100% success rate was seen with dilated bile ducts. Not a single complication was observed in our series. With our limited series, it can be assumed that proximal obstruction is more likely to mean neoplasm of either the gallbladder or bile duct, whereas distal obstruction with visualization of dilated cystic duct means either neoplasm of the head of pancreas or metastatic carcinoma.