Preservation of papillary relaxation after endoscopic papillary balloon dilation.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Endoscopic papillary balloon dilation has been accepted as a less hazardous alternative to endoscopic sphincterotomy for removal of bile duct stones in patients with impaired hemostasis. Several manometric studies have suggested that endoscopic papillary balloon dilation can be expected to preserve papillary function. However, the aspect of the preservation of postprandial relaxation has not been addressed.

METHODOLOGY: Seven, 7 and 6 patients underwent fatty-meal magnetic resonance cholangiography before endoscopic papillary balloon dilation for the treatment of common bile duct stones, and then 12 and 24 months after the procedure. Seven patients were employed as controls. Magnetic resonance cholangiography images were obtained on a 1.5-Tesla scanner (Signa Horizon, GE Medical Systems, Milwaukee, WI) with a phased-array torso coil. After an overnight fast, magnetic resonance cholangiography was performed before and after fatty-meal ingestion.

RESULTS

No patients showed significant postprandial increase of the bile duct diameter except one patient with stone impaction during the examination.

CONCLUSIONS

Endoscopic papillary balloon dilation may preserve the papillary function of postprandial relaxation.