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Physiology · Jaundice · Investigation · 49 slides

Bile, jaundice and investigation.

Why a patient turns yellow, and how to find where the fault lies: bile flow, bilirubin, the pattern of liver tests and the choice of investigation.

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Contents · 7 parts

Introduction

Slide 1: Bile, jaundice and investigation
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Bile, jaundice and investigation

HEPATOBILIARY SURGERY · LECTURE 2

Bile, jaundice and investigation

Why a patient turns yellow, and how to find where the fault lies.

Dr Prateek Gupta

Assistant Professor, Department of General Surgery Dayanand Medical College & Hospital, Ludhiana prateekguptasurgery.com

Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP): bile ducts widened above a block at the lower end

MRCP: Hellerhoff, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Slide 2: Three patients with yellow eyes
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Three patients with yellow eyes

THREE PATIENTS IN THE SURGICAL OUTPATIENT CLINIC

A. A 19-year-old student

Yellow eyes on and off for years. Tired. A spleen tip is felt.

B. A 28-year-old man

A week of fever, nausea and loss of appetite, then yellow eyes and dark urine. The liver is tender.

C. A 66-year-old man

Yellow for three weeks, without pain. Itching, pale stools, dark urine and weight loss. A non-tender gallbladder can be felt.

Questions to keep in mind

1. Where does each fault lie: before, in or after the liver?

2. B's urine is dark. Does that mean his ducts are blocked?

3. Which blood tests, and which scan first?

4. What does C's palpable gallbladder suggest?

Illustrative cases, not real patients. We return to them at the end.

BILE, JAUNDICE AND INVESTIGATION

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Bile formation and flow

Slide 3: Bile
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Bile

PART 1

What bile is made of, how bile salts work and come back, and how the gallbladder stores and releases bile.

BILE, JAUNDICE AND INVESTIGATION

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Slide 4: Bile: mostly water, made by liver cells and ducts
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Bile: mostly water, made by liver cells and ducts

WHAT BILE IS

Water 97%

The other 3%: bile salts, phospholipids (for example lecithin), cholesterol and bilirubin.

Made by liver cells. They secrete bile into the bile canaliculi.

Added to by the ducts. The duct lining adds water and electrolytes: about 20% of the volume.

Like plasma. The electrolytes in bile resemble those of plasma.

How much. About 40 mL an hour (Bailey & Love).

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Slide 5: Bile salts come from cholesterol and carry fat
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Bile salts come from cholesterol and carry fat

BILE SALTS

1

In the liver. Cholesterol is made into the primary bile acids: cholic and chenodeoxycholic acid.

2

Conjugated. They are conjugated with glycine or taurine.

3

In the gut. Bacteria make the secondary bile acids: deoxycholic and lithocholic acid.

4

Their job. Bile salts form micelles, which are needed to absorb fat and the fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.

No bile salts in the gut: fat and vitamins A, D, E and K are poorly absorbed.

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Slide 6: About 95% of bile salts come back to the liver
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About 95% of bile salts come back to the liver

THE ENTEROHEPATIC CIRCULATION

Out in bile. Bile salts made in the liver reach the duodenum in bile.

Back from the terminal ileum. About 95% are reabsorbed there and return to the liver in portal blood (Bailey & Love).

A small loss. The rest is lost in the stool.

Remove the terminal ileum and the bile salt pool shrinks; deficiency of vitamins A, D, E and K may follow.

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Slide 7: Fasting: the gallbladder fills and concentrates bile
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Fasting: the gallbladder fills and concentrates bile

BETWEEN MEALS

Sphincter of Oddi resists. During fasting, resistance to flow through the sphincter is high, and bile is diverted into the gallbladder.

Concentrated 5⁠–⁠10 times. The gallbladder absorbs water, sodium chloride and bicarbonate.

Mucus. It secretes about 20 mL of mucus a day.

The sphincter also regulates the flow of bile and pancreatic juice, and stops duodenal contents flowing back into the ducts.

Between meals, high resistance at the sphincter diverts bile into the gallbladder.

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Slide 8: A meal empties the gallbladder into the duodenum
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A meal empties the gallbladder into the duodenum

AFTER A MEAL

CCK. Fat, protein and acid in the duodenum release cholecystokinin (CCK) from its lining.

The gallbladder contracts and the sphincter relaxes. CCK does both (Sabiston, Schwartz); Bailey & Love says the response is in part due to CCK.

The vagus. Vagal activity also empties the gallbladder, less strongly than CCK.

Secretin. The strongest stimulus to duct secretion, which makes bile rich in bicarbonate; it increases bile flow.

A meal turns the flow from the gallbladder to the duodenum.

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Bilirubin

Slide 9: Bilirubin
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Bilirubin

PART 2

Where bilirubin comes from, how the liver changes it, and how it leaves the body.

Normal blood, scanning electron microscope: red cells, with white cells and platelets. About 80% of bilirubin comes from old red cells.

Micrograph: Bruce Wetzel, Harry Schaefer (National Cancer Institute), public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

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Slide 10: Bilirubin comes mostly from old red cells
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Bilirubin comes mostly from old red cells

THE PATH OF BILIRUBIN, 1

Source. About 80% from old red cells; the other 20% from other haem proteins.

Where. Red cells are broken down in the spleen, and by Kupffer cells, the liver's macrophages.

Steps. Haem → biliverdin (green) → bilirubin (orange).

In the blood. This unconjugated bilirubin is insoluble in water and is carried on albumin.

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Slide 11: The liver makes bilirubin water-soluble
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The liver makes bilirubin water-soluble

THE PATH OF BILIRUBIN, 2

Uptake. Liver cells take up unconjugated bilirubin.

Conjugation. Glucuronyl transferase joins it to glucuronic acid. Conjugated bilirubin is water-soluble.

Excretion. It is secreted into the bile canaliculi against a gradient.

When the enzyme is slow

In Gilbert's syndrome, reduced glucuronyl transferase raises unconjugated bilirubin. It is benign and affects about 4⁠–⁠7% of people.

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Slide 12: Oxidised urobilinogens colour stool and urine
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Oxidised urobilinogens colour stool and urine

THE PATH OF BILIRUBIN, 3

In the gut. Gut bacteria turn bilirubin into urobilinogens.

Stool. Most leaves in the stool, which their oxidised forms colour brown.

Urine. A little is reabsorbed and some reaches the urine, which the oxidised form colours yellow.

No bilirubin reaching the gut means no brown colour: the pale stool of obstruction.

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Slide 13: Two bilirubins, and only one can reach the urine
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Two bilirubins, and only one can reach the urine

TWO FORMS OF BILIRUBIN

Normal range

Total bilirubin 5⁠–⁠17 μmol/L (0.3⁠–⁠1.2 mg/dL).

So bilirubin in the urine is conjugated bilirubin.

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UnconjugatedConjugated
Laboratory nameIndirectDirect
MadeFrom haem, mostly from old red cellsIn the liver cell, by glucuronyl transferase
In waterInsoluble: carried on albuminSoluble
In the urineNot excreted, because it is bound to albuminCan be found in the urine of patients with jaundice

Jaundice

Slide 14: Jaundice
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Jaundice

PART 3

What jaundice is, the three places the fault can lie, and the clues at the bedside.

Yellow sclerae in jaundice

Photograph: Sheila J. Toro, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped to the eyes.

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Slide 15: Jaundice is bilirubin staining the tissues
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Jaundice is bilirubin staining the tissues

JAUNDICE

Yellow sclera in jaundice

Photo: Bobjgalindo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped to one eye.

Definition. Yellowish staining of the skin, sclera and mucous membranes with the pigment bilirubin.

When it shows. In the sclera at about 2.5 mg/dL, and in the skin above 5 mg/dL (Sabiston). Schwartz gives above 2.5⁠–⁠3 mg/dL.

Where to look. Check under the tongue (the frenulum) first.

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Slide 16: Three places the fault can lie
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Three places the fault can lie

CLASSIFYING JAUNDICE

1

Before the liver. Too much bilirubin is made (prehepatic).

2

In the liver. The liver cells cannot handle it: hepatocellular dysfunction (hepatic; Schwartz says intrahepatic).

3

After the liver. Bile cannot reach the gut: mechanical obstruction (posthepatic).

Sabiston’s ‘medical’ jaundice arises from haem breakdown up to conjugation; ‘surgical’ jaundice from a block to excretion.

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Slide 17: Before the liver: too much bilirubin is made
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Before the liver: too much bilirubin is made

BEFORE THE LIVER

Cause. Haemolysis: inherited and acquired haemolytic anaemias, for example hereditary spherocytosis.

Blood. Unconjugated bilirubin rises.

Urine. Unconjugated bilirubin is not excreted in the urine.

Stool. Faecal urobilinogen is increased.

Newborns. Severe unconjugated hyperbilirubinaemia can damage the newborn brain (kernicterus).

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Slide 18: In the liver: the cells cannot handle it
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In the liver: the cells cannot handle it

IN THE LIVER

Infection. Viruses and sepsis.

Alcohol.

Drugs. Including paracetamol, oral contraceptives and anabolic steroids.

Autoimmune disease.

Cirrhosis. When advanced, it impairs conjugation and excretion.

Which bilirubin. Liver cell disease can raise the conjugated fraction.

Liver disease itself is taught in Lectures 11⁠–⁠13.

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Slide 19: After the liver: bile cannot reach the gut
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After the liver: bile cannot reach the gut

AFTER THE LIVER

Dark urine. Conjugated bilirubin backs up into the blood and, being water-soluble, can pass into the urine.

Pale stools. Little or no bilirubin reaches the gut, so the stool loses its brown colour.

Steatorrhoea. Too few bile salts reach the gut, so fat is poorly absorbed.

Itching. Often present with the dark urine and pale stools.

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Slide 20: The three types side by side
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The three types side by side

COMPARING THE THREE

— no single stool finding is given here for this type.

The blood tests that separate them come in Part 4.

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Before the liverIn the liverAfter the liver
ExamplesHaemolysisViruses, alcohol, drugs, sepsisStones, strictures, tumours
Bilirubin raisedUnconjugatedThe conjugated fraction can riseConjugated
UrineNo bilirubin: unconjugated is not excretedCan be darkDark
StoolFaecal urobilinogen increased—Pale; fat may be poorly absorbed
Slide 21: Obstruction from inside the duct or from outside
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Obstruction from inside the duct or from outside

CAUSES OF OBSTRUCTION

1 Hilum 2 Duct above the duodenum

3 Lower duct and papilla 4 Pancreatic head, pressing from outside

Inside the duct

Stones in the bile duct

Benign and malignant strictures

Cholangiocarcinoma

Disorders of the papilla; ampullary tumours

Cholangitis

Parasites such as Ascaris and hydatid

Injury at surgery

From outside

Acute and chronic pancreatitis

Pancreatic pseudocysts

Pancreatic head tumours

Mirizzi syndrome: a gallbladder stone pressing on the duct (Lecture 3)

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Slide 22: Does pain rule out a tumour? No
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Does pain rule out a tumour? No

A CLUE IN THE HISTORY

A stone in the duct

Pain. Usually present.

Jaundice. May come and go as the stone moves.

A tumour

Pain. Commonly absent. Ampullary and pancreatic head tumours are characteristically painless (Bailey & Love).

But. In pancreatic cancer many patients have pain (Sabiston); Schwartz calls ‘painless jaundice’ an inaccurate aphorism.

Painless jaundice raises suspicion of a tumour.

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Slide 23: A palpable gallbladder points away from stones
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A palpable gallbladder points away from stones

COURVOISIER'S LAW

Duct stone: seldom distends

Lower-end tumour: often distends

In a jaundiced patient, a palpable gallbladder is seldom due to stones (Courvoisier, 1890).

Stone: the gallbladder is likely chronically inflamed and seldom distends.

Tumour: usually a periampullary cancer blocking the lower end of the duct.

In cholangiocarcinoma, hilar tumours usually leave the gallbladder decompressed.

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Slide 24: +
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+

A RED FLAG

Fever with jaundice is a red flag for cholangitis

Jaundice

Rigors (fever)

+

Right upper quadrant pain or tenderness

Charcot's triad: think of cholangitis

Cholangitis and its management are taught in Lecture 5.

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Liver tests

Slide 25: Liver tests
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Liver tests

PART 4

What each test measures, the patterns they make, and what a blocked duct means before a procedure.

Haemolytic

↑ unconjugated bilirubin

Hepatocellular

↑ bilirubin

↑ AST and ALT

Obstructive

↑ conjugated bilirubin

↑ ALP and GGT

↑ AST and ALT: a smaller rise

↑ raised. ALP alkaline phosphatase; GGT gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase; AST and ALT aspartate and alanine aminotransferases.

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Slide 26: What each liver test tells you
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What each liver test tells you

LIVER TESTS

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TestNormalWhat it reflectsOne caution
Bilirubin5⁠–⁠17 μmol/L (0.3⁠–⁠1.2 mg/dL)Conjugated (direct) and unconjugated (indirect) fractionsAsk for both fractions
Alkaline phosphatase (ALP)30⁠–⁠140 IU/LLiver and bile duct lining; also bone, intestine, placentaBone disease raises it too
Gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT)10⁠–⁠48 IU/LRaised in biliary obstructionInduced by alcohol
Aminotransferases: alanine (ALT) and aspartate (AST)5⁠–⁠40 IU/L eachUsually acute damage to liver cellsALT is more specific for the liver
Albumin35⁠–⁠50 g/LMade only in the liver: synthetic functionHalf-life 15⁠–⁠20 days: a poor acute marker
Prothrombin time (PT)12⁠–⁠16 sThe liver's effect on clottingVitamin K lack or warfarin also prolong it
Slide 27: ALP raised: is it the liver? Look at the GGT
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ALP raised: is it the liver? Look at the GGT

READING ALP

Liver and bile ducts

Bone

Intestine

Placenta

ALP raised

GGT raised as well

Supports a liver source

Many sources. ALP is found in the liver and the lining of the bile ducts, and in bone, intestine, placenta and other tissues.

Raised in obstruction. ALP rises in cholestasis or biliary obstruction; bone disease also raises it.

GGT helps. A raised GGT with a raised ALP supports a liver source. Alcohol also induces GGT.

Slow to fall. ALP's half-life is about 7 days, so it falls slowly after the block is relieved.

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Slide 28: Do ALT and AST measure liver function? No
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Do ALT and AST measure liver function? No

TWO KINDS OF TEST

Injury: ALT and AST

What they show. Usually acute damage to liver cells.

ALT is more specific for the liver.

AST to ALT above 2:1 is common in alcoholic liver disease.

Function: albumin and PT

Albumin is made only in the liver, but its half-life of 15⁠–⁠20 days makes it a poor marker of acute dysfunction.

PT is the best test of the liver's effect on clotting. Factor VII has the shortest half-life of the clotting factors.

The vitamin K test

A long PT that corrects after vitamin K by injection points to malabsorption of vitamin K, as in obstruction. One that does not correct points to liver cell failure.

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Slide 29: Why a blocked duct matters before a procedure
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Why a blocked duct matters before a procedure

OBSTRUCTIVE JAUNDICE AND PROCEDURES

Clotting

Bile cannot reach the gut

Vitamin K, a fat-soluble vitamin, is not absorbed

Clotting factors II, VII, IX and X fall

The prothrombin time lengthens

Infection

Stenting the duct before surgery raises infective complications.

Wound healing

Jaundice is a risk factor for wound dehiscence.

So the prothrombin time is checked before endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) or surgery.

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Slide 30: Preparing a jaundiced patient for a procedure
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Preparing a jaundiced patient for a procedure

PREPARATION

1

Check clotting. Measure the prothrombin time and correct any abnormality with vitamin K or fresh frozen plasma before ERCP. Vitamin K is given by injection.

2

Hydrate. Ensure the patient is well hydrated.

3

Antibiotics. Give them before biliary procedures such as ERCP and percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography (PTC).

4

Nutrition. Assess it.

5

Before cholecystectomy. The preparation includes renal and liver function tests and the prothrombin time.

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Slide 31: Three patterns of liver tests
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Three patterns of liver tests

PATTERNS

Haemolytic

↑ unconjugated bilirubin

Hepatocellular

↑ bilirubin

↑ AST and ALT

Obstructive

↑ conjugated bilirubin

↑ ALP and GGT

↑ AST and ALT: a smaller rise

↑ raised.

A pattern is not a diagnosis

Bile flow can fail inside the liver as well as outside it.

Liver cell disease can raise conjugated bilirubin.

A cholestatic pattern does not by itself prove a block outside the liver: ultrasound decides.

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Slide 32: Two traps in reading the tests
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Two traps in reading the tests

TRAPS

1. Normal tests do not exclude duct stones

Liver tests are normal in about a third of patients with stones in the duct, especially when the block is incomplete or comes and goes.

2. CA 19-9 is not a cancer test on its own

Carbohydrate antigen 19-9 can be mildly raised in cholangitis and biliary obstruction as well as in cancer, and obstruction alone can raise it falsely. It is not highly specific or sensitive.

Read every result with the history and the examination.

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Investigation

Slide 33: Imaging
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Imaging

PART 5

Which test answers which question, from ultrasound first to the tests that also treat.

Plain X-ray

CT

MRCP

EUS

ERCP

PTC

HIDA

Ultrasound first

CT computed tomography; MRCP magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography; EUS endoscopic ultrasound; HIDA hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid scan. ERCP and PTC: slides 29 and 30.

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Slide 34: Each test answers a different question
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Each test answers a different question

CHOOSING A TEST

Oral and intravenous cholecystography have been replaced by more accurate imaging.

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TestThe question it answers
Ultrasound, firstAre there gallstones? Are the ducts dilated, and at what level?
Plain X-rayIs there calcification, or air in the ducts?
CT (computed tomography)What is the cause and where? Can a cancer be staged?
MRCP (magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography)What do the ducts look like? Are there stones?
EUS (endoscopic ultrasound)What is at the lower duct or ampulla? Is tissue needed?
ERCPCan stones be removed, or a stent placed, from below?
PTCCan a high block, or one ERCP could not treat, be reached from above?
HIDA scan (hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid)Does the gallbladder fill? Is there a bile leak?
Slide 35: A plain X-ray can show calcification or air
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A plain X-ray can show calcification or air

PLAIN X-RAY

Ring-shaped calcified stones (ringed)

X-ray: James Heilman, MD, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped, ring redrawn.

One large calcified stone (arrow)

X-ray: Jmarchn, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons; arrow added.

Stones. Only about 10% of gallstones show. Most cholesterol stones are radiolucent; pigment stones are often radio-opaque.

Also seen. A calcified ‘porcelain’ gallbladder; air in the biliary tree after sphincterotomy or an anastomosis; gas in the gallbladder wall; pancreatic calcification.

Limited use. Overall, its role is limited.

A normal plain film does not exclude gallstones.

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Slide 36: Ultrasound comes first
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Ultrasound comes first

ULTRASOUND

1

2

3

1 Stone 2 Acoustic shadow 3 Gallbladder

Ultrasound: Nevit Dilmen, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; markers added.

Why first. Accurate, widely available, cheap and quick.

Gallstones. Stones cast an acoustic shadow. Sensitivity and specificity for gallbladder stones are above 90%.

Limits. It depends on the operator, and body fat and bowel gas get in the way. The duct behind the duodenum is poorly seen.

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Slide 37: Ultrasound in jaundice: are the ducts dilated?
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Ultrasound in jaundice: are the ducts dilated?

ULTRASOUND IN JAUNDICE

1

2

1 Dilated common bile duct 2 Stone

Ultrasound: Cerevisae, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped to one panel, markers added.

Dilated bile ducts inside the liver

Ultrasound: Mikael Häggström, M.D., CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Dilated or not. Ultrasound reliably shows whether the ducts are dilated. It often shows the level, and only sometimes the cause.

Over 8 mm. A common bile duct over 8 mm, with gallstones, jaundice and biliary pain, is highly suggestive of duct stones.

Ducts dilated: look for the block. Ducts not dilated: liver cell disease is likely.

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Slide 38: CT shows the cause and stages a tumour
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CT shows the cause and stages a tumour

CT

Coronal CT: a dilated common bile duct (ringed)

CT: James Heilman, MD, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; ring redrawn.

Double duct sign: a mass in the head of the pancreas narrows both the bile duct and the pancreatic duct.

Cause and site. CT identifies both.

Staging. The staging test for cancers of the liver, gallbladder, bile ducts and pancreas.

Steady. Less affected by body build; not operator-dependent.

Misses stones. Only 75% of gallstones are seen.

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Slide 39: MRCP maps the ducts without a needle or X-rays
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MRCP maps the ducts without a needle or X-rays

MRCP

1

2

3

1 Gallbladder 2 Bile duct

3 Pancreatic duct

Normal MRCP: Hellerhoff, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; markers added.

a

b

c

d

a Gallbladder with stones b Stones in the lower bile duct

c Pancreatic duct d Duodenum

MRCP: Hellerhoff, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons; the author's arrows, letters redrawn.

No needle, no X-rays. Images of the ducts with no ionising radiation and no intravenous contrast.

What it shows. Obstruction, strictures, stones and tumours.

Diagnosis only. It has largely replaced diagnostic ERCP; treatment still needs ERCP or surgery.

Duct stones. Sensitivity above 90%. The lower duct is sometimes hard to assess.

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Slide 40: EUS looks at the lower duct from the duodenum
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EUS looks at the lower duct from the duodenum

EUS

What it is. Ultrasound from an endoscope (an echoendoscope) passed into the duodenum.

Duct stones. Accurate for stones in the bile duct.

Cancers. Diagnoses and stages pancreatic and periampullary cancers, and can take a biopsy or fine-needle aspirate.

Valuable for. The lower end of the duct and the ampulla.

It looks closely where ultrasound through the skin sees poorly.

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Slide 41: ERCP is now a treatment
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ERCP is now a treatment

ERCP

The papilla after sphincterotomy

Endoscopy: Doctor roach, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped.

A basket drawing stones out through the papilla

Endoscopy: Samir (The Scope), CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons; cropped.

Now for treatment. Ultrasound and MRCP have taken over diagnosis; ERCP is used only to treat.

What it does. Sphincterotomy and stone removal, stents, and brushings.

Complications. Pancreatitis in 1⁠–⁠3% (Bailey & Love); also bleeding, perforation and cholangitis. Sabiston gives up to 10% overall.

Make the diagnosis first; use ERCP to treat.

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Slide 42: PTC reaches the ducts through the liver
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PTC reaches the ducts through the liver

PTC

How. A needle passes through the skin and the liver into a dilated duct, to show it and to drain it.

When. For high (hilar) blocks, and when ERCP fails or is not possible.

Duct size. As effective as ERCP when the ducts are dilated; less so when they are not.

Before. Check clotting and give antibiotics.

Risks. Bleeding, cholangitis and bile leak.

ERCP reaches the ducts from below; PTC from above.

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Slide 43: HIDA shows function, not structure
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HIDA shows function, not structure

HIDA

Gallbladder fills

Normal

Gallbladder does not fill

Suggests acute cholecystitis

Function. It shows where bile flows, not what the ducts look like.

Normal. The gallbladder fills within 30 minutes in 90% of people, and within an hour in all.

Non-filling suggests acute cholecystitis (Lecture 4).

Also shows bile leaks after surgery (Lecture 7), and obstruction.

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Slide 44: An approach to the jaundiced patient
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An approach to the jaundiced patient

PUTTING IT TOGETHER

History and examination

Blood tests, with the bilirubin fraction, and ultrasound

Unconjugated bilirubin raised

Ducts not dilated

Ducts dilated

Look for haemolysis

Liver cell disease is likely: viral serology and liver work-up (Lectures 11⁠–⁠13)

MRCP to show the block, or contrast CT if a tumour is suspected

ERCP or PTC to treat

EUS can assess the lower duct and ampulla, and take tissue.

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Slide 45: Where each fault lies
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Where each fault lies

BACK TO THE THREE PATIENTS

A. The student

Revealed: unconjugated bilirubin ↑; no bilirubin in the urine.

Fault: likely before the liver.

Leading explanation: haemolysis.

B. The man with fever

Revealed: AST and ALT ↑; ultrasound: ducts not dilated.

Fault: likely in the liver.

Working diagnosis: a hepatocellular cause. His dark urine may be conjugated bilirubin; it does not prove a block.

C. The older man

Revealed: ultrasound: ducts dilated, gallbladder distended.

Fault: after the liver.

Courvoisier's law points away from stones.

Next: contrast CT, because a tumour is suspected.

Working diagnosis: a malignant block at the lower end of the duct; its type is not yet proved.

Illustrative results, not real patients. ↑ means raised.

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Slide 46: Classify jaundice and plan the tests
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Classify jaundice and plan the tests

A VIVA ANSWER

1

Define. Yellow staining of the skin, sclera and mucous membranes by bilirubin; seen in the sclera at about 2.5 mg/dL (Sabiston).

2

Classify by where the fault lies. Before the liver (haemolysis), in the liver (liver cell disease) or after it (obstruction).

3

History and examination. Pain, fever, itching, the colour of urine and stool, weight loss, and a palpable gallbladder.

4

Blood tests. Bilirubin with its fraction, ALP, GGT, ALT, AST, albumin and the prothrombin time.

5

Imaging. Ultrasound first: are the ducts dilated? If so, MRCP, or contrast CT if a tumour is suspected; then ERCP or PTC to treat.

6

Before ERCP or PTC. Correct clotting with vitamin K by injection or fresh frozen plasma, give antibiotics, and hydrate.

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Slide 47: What to carry out of this lecture
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What to carry out of this lecture

TAKE-HOME

1

Bile. 97% water; bile salts carry fat and vitamins A, D, E and K, and about 95% come back from the terminal ileum (Bailey & Love).

2

Bilirubin. Unconjugated bilirubin travels on albumin and stays out of the urine; the liver conjugates it; only conjugated bilirubin can reach the urine.

3

Three faults. Before, in or after the liver. Pale stools with dark urine and itching suggest obstruction; dark urine alone does not prove it.

4

Tests. Haemolytic, hepatocellular and obstructive patterns guide, but ultrasound decides whether the ducts are dilated.

5

Before a biliary procedure. Check the prothrombin time and correct any clotting abnormality, give antibiotics, and hydrate.

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References

Slide 48: Books used for this lecture
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Books used for this lecture

REFERENCES

Bailey & Love's Short Practice of Surgery, 28th edition. Chapters 69⁠–⁠72 (pages 1193⁠–⁠1284), and pages 1307 and 1449. 27th edition, page 297.

Sabiston Textbook of Surgery, 21st edition. Chapters 54, 55 and 56.

Schwartz's Principles of Surgery, 11th edition. Chapters 31, 32 and 33, and page 113 (chapter 4).

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Slide 49: Image credits
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Image credits

REFERENCES

Every diagram is an original drawing made for this lecture; no textbook figure is reproduced. Photographs, X-rays and scans are from Wikimedia Commons, shown whole or cropped, with labels, markers and arrows added. Each file's page is commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: followed by its name; licence texts are at creativecommons.org/licenses.

BILE, JAUNDICE AND INVESTIGATION

49

SlideFile on Wikimedia CommonsAuthor, licence
1Adenokarzinom des Duodenums 65M - MR single shot MRCP - 001.jpgHellerhoff, CC BY-SA 4.0
9SEM blood cells.jpgBruce Wetzel, Harry Schaefer (National Cancer Institute), public domain
14Scleral Icterus.jpgSheila J. Toro, CC BY 4.0
15Cholangitis Jaundice.jpgBobjgalindo, CC BY-SA 4.0
35StonesXray.PNGJames Heilman, MD, CC BY-SA 3.0
35Big gallstone, X-ray.jpgJmarchn, CC0
36Ultrasound image of gallbladder stone Gallstone 091937515.jpgNevit Dilmen, CC BY-SA 3.0
SlideFile on Wikimedia CommonsAuthor, licence
37Ultrasound of diated common bile duct and intrahepatic ducts due to gallstone obstruction.pngCerevisae, CC BY-SA 4.0
37Ultrasonography of dilated bile ducts.jpgMikael Häggström, M.D., CC0
38Obstructivebiliarydilation.pngJames Heilman, MD, CC BY-SA 3.0
39MRCP Normalbefund 66M - MR - 001.jpgHellerhoff, CC BY-SA 4.0
39MRCP Choledocholithiasis.jpgHellerhoff, CC BY-SA 3.0
41Papilla vateri nach erfolgter endoskopischer Papillotomie.jpgDoctor roach, CC BY 4.0
41Pigment stone extraction.pngSamir (The Scope), English Wikipedia, CC BY 2.5

Sources and image credits

Original lecture diagrams and source/image credits are preserved from the PowerPoint. Each photograph or scan below links to its source and applicable licence. Changes are described in the slide captions; adapted ShareAlike images retain that licence.

Images

Sources

  • [1] REFERENCES
  • [2] Books used for this lecture
  • [3] Bailey & Love's Short Practice of Surgery, 28th edition. Chapters 69⁠–⁠72 (pages 1193⁠–⁠1284), and pages 1307 and 1449. 27th edition, page 297.
  • [4] Sabiston Textbook of Surgery, 21st edition. Chapters 54, 55 and 56.
  • [5] Schwartz's Principles of Surgery, 11th edition. Chapters 31, 32 and 33, and page 113 (chapter 4).