title: Lower gastrointestinal bleeding due to hepatic artery pseudoaneurysm following laparoscopic cholecystectomy.
abstract: Pseudoaneurysm of hepatic artery is a rare but known complication of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). Such pseudoaneurysms may bleed in biliary tree, upper gastrointestinal (GI) tract or peritoneal cavity leading to life-threatening internal haemorrhage. It is very rare for them to present as lower GI bleeding. We report an unusual case of Right hepatic artery pseudoaneurysm developed following LC, which ruptured into hepatic flexure of colon resulting in catastrophic lower GI bleeding. This was associated with partial celiac artery occlusion due to thrombosis. Due to failure of therapeutic embolisation, the patient was subjected to exploratory laparotomy to control haemorrhage. Postoperatively, patient recovered well and was discharged on postoperative day 10. A strong index of suspicion is necessary for early diagnosis of such condition and to limit resultant morbidity. Angioembolisation is the first-line treatment and surgery is indicated in selected cases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Seth G. S. Medical College, K. E. M. Hospital, Parel, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
authors.forename: Ajay D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Mate
authors.forename: Kailas R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Surnare
authors.forename: Samir S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Deolekar
authors.forename: Anil K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Gvalani
keywords: Angioembolisation; hepatic artery; laparoscopic cholecystectomy; pseudoaneurysm