title: Biliary dyskinesia: is the problem with Oddi?
abstract: We report our experience of cholecystectomy for treating symptoms suggestive of biliary disease in association with a decreased gallbladder ejection fraction (GBEF) but without evidence of cholelithiasis. Five children with normal biliary ultrasounds were evaluated between January 1990 and December 2000 for recurrent upper abdominal pain. Based on a cholecystokinin (CCK)-provoked GBEF of less than 50% and the absence of any other gastrointestinal pathology, patients underwent cholecystectomy with operative cholangiography for presumed biliary dyskinesia. Pathological examination demonstrated chronic inflammation in all cases. Two patients had complete resolution of their symptoms, but three had persistent pain following surgery. Biliary dyskinesia seems an uncommon cause of persistent abdominal pain in childhood. Cholecystectomy was not always effective in relieving symptoms. Biliary scintigraphy with CCK provocation should not be used as the sole criterion for cholecystectomy. Sphincteric manometry may be valuable in the assessment of this small group of patients to avoid inappropriate intervention. The future perhaps lies in better understanding of the physiological action and pharmacological control of the sphincter of Oddi.
authors.affiliation: Douglas Cohen Department of Paediatric Surgery, The Children's Hospital at Westmead, The University of Sydney, Locked Bag 4001, NSW 2145, Westmead, Australia.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.forename: A J A
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Holland
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shun
authors.forename: H C O
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Martin
mesh_terms: D001657:Biliary Dyskinesia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D002648:Child; D002763:Cholecystectomy; D005260:Female; D016473:Gallbladder Emptying / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D009803:Sphincter of Oddi / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome