Retained plastic biliary stent presenting with obstructive jaundice: a case report

Forgotten stents may lead to serious complications. We present a case report of a forgotten common bile duct (CBD) fully covered plastic stent presenting with Obstructive Jaundice. A 66 years-old female patient presented with features of obstructive jaundice. Further enquiry revealed a history of ERCP guided biliary stent placement 12 years ago, after which she was lost to follow up. An endoscopic attempt to retrieve the old stent and relieve biliary obstruction was unsuccessful, and a fresh stent was placed across the CBD following a sphincterotomy. CT showed evidence of a stent in situ, alongside calcified fragments of the previous stent and multiple CBD stones. Patient was taken up for surgery and Roux-en-y hepaticojejunostomy was performed following CBD exploration and retrieval of the stent-stone complex.