Treatment Outcomes of Bile Duct Stones Using Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography at Detudom Crown Prince Hospital

Abstract

Gallstones and bile duct stones are common health problems in Thailand, particularly in the northeastern region. Traditional treatments involve open surgery that often leads to complications and lengthy recovery periods. Currently, the Ministry of Public Health promotes minimally invasive treatment to facilitate faster patient recovery. Detudom Crown Prince Hospital has been provided Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) services for bile duct stone treatment since 2019. The objective of this retrospective descriptive study was to evaluate treatment outcomes and complications associated with ERCP in bile duct stones’ patients. Data were collected from medical records of 103 patients treated between January 2020 and December 2022. The tools for collection data were four-part data forms including general information, treatment factors, procedural details, and complications. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square tests, and Fisher's exact tests used to analyze relationships between variables. The study found the success rate of treatment (81.55%) that consistent with other studies reporting ranges of 70-90%. The most common complications were pancreatitis (8.74%) and cholangitis (2.91%). The use of complex techniques combining multiple methods such as CRE+ EST+ Balloon+ Lithotripsy showed the success rate was 100%, while procedures lasting 10-30 minutes had a 95.12% success rate, significantly higher than procedures lasting over 60 minutes (64.86%) (p<.001). These findings might be applied to develop guidelines for appropriate technique selection, patient risk screening, and medical team skill development that could improve success rates and reduce complications in future ERCP treatments for bile duct stones.