[Cholecysto-cholangiography as an alternative to cystic duct cholangiography in laparoscopic cholecystectomy].

Intraoperative cholangiography may be an important adjunct to laparoscopic cholecystectomy in order to prevent bile duct lesions. Laparoscopic cannulation of the cystic duct can be very difficult and time consuming. We therefore developed a simple technique of cholecystocholangiography. The gallbladder is punctured and filled with contrast medium after having localised the cystic duct and put a metal clip as a landmark. The study included 52 patients having either cholecystocholangiography or cystic duct cholangiography. In 13 out of 26 patients (50%) cholecystocholangiography failed because of obstruction of the cystic duct. The cholangiograms showed complete filling of the bile ducts in 5 (19%) and incomplete visualisation in 8 cases (31%). Cystic duct cholangiography showed significantly better results with good delineation of the biliary tree in 19 cases (73%). Five cholangiograms were suboptimal (19%) and only 2 studies failed (8%). The relation between cystic duct and common bile duct was clearly visible in 24 cases (92%) with cystic duct cholangiography compared with 13 cases (50%) with cholecystocholangiography. Cystic duct cholangiography has better success rates in delineating biliary anatomy in order to prevent bile duct injury. Cholecystocholangiography is a good alternative in cases where the cystic duct cannot be initially visualized.