[Common bile duct stones: the surgical treatment is always valid].
OBJECTIVE
The treatment of common bile duct stones has changed with the new therapeutic techniques, that have replaced the conventional therapy, represented by surgery. Anyway, they could cause some problems, that must be regarded. Therefore, we wish to confirm the importance of the conventional surgery in the management of patients with common bile duct stones.


METHODS
A total of 147 patients were operated for common bile duct stones (73 in emergency and 74 in election). The intraoperative cholangiography was carried out in 141 patients and a choledocoscopy in 130 patients. A drain of Kehr was positioned in 120 patients, a bilio-digestive anastomosis in 26 cases and in 1 case there was a direct suture of the common bile duct without drain. All patients were treated with a short-term antibioticotherapy, protracted to 5 days in the emergency cases. In the patients with the drain of Kehr there was a control cholangiography after 7 days from operation and it was removed after 25 days. The analysis of the results was done dividing the patients according to the age: <75 years old and >75 years old.


RESULTS
Nobody died during the operation. Complications were 17.4% in the patients >75 years old and 2,6% in the patients <75 years old. There were 2 death, in the postoperative period, for the group >75 years old. Cases operated in emergency were 68.1% of "old" patients and 37.2% of "young" patients. The postoperative period was 14.9+/-9.2 days for the "old" group and 10.9+/-5.2 days for the "young" group.


CONCLUSIONS
The treatment of common bile duct stones is still a surgical treatment, particularly for "old" patients.
Nardi
F
F
Service de Chirurgie Viscéral et Digestive, Centre Hospitalier Princesse Grace, Monaco, Principaute de Monaco.
Gavelli
A
A
Dapri
G
G
Huguet
C
C
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D042882:Gallstones / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies