Intractable Biliary Strictures After Living Donor Liver Transplantation: A Case Series

Background: Biliary stricture (BS) is a severe complication after liver transplantation. It is difficult to treat, especially after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). We successfully treated 4 patients for intractable BS after LDLT. All patients had developed cholangitis with stenosis of bile ducts anastomosis. Case 1:. A 65-year-old woman underwent LDLT with right lobe graft and duct-to-duct biliary reconstruction. Internal plastic stents inserted by endoscopic retrograde cholangiography (ERC) were changed quarterly for the next 2 years. Case 2: A 55-year-old man underwent LDLT with right lobe graft and duct-to-duct biliary reconstruction. Insertion of internal plastic stents by ERC was attempted; however, the posterior bile duct branch showed complete obstruction. After percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTCD), the stents were inserted using the rendezvous technique of ERC and were changed by ERC quarterly for the next 3 years. Case 3: A 22-year-old man underwent LDLT with left lobe graft and hepaticojejunostomy. An external drainage tube was inserted by PTCD, and stents were changed quarterly for the next 2 years. Case 4: A 60-year-old man underwent LDLT with right lobe graft and hepaticojejunostomy. An external drainage tube was inserted by PTCD, and changed to a metallic stent after 1 year. Three months later the stent was extracted using the rendezvous technique of double balloon enteroscopy. Conclusion: BS of complete obstruction type after LDLT is difficult to treat. Appropriate procedures should be chosen based on the types of strictures and biliary reconstruction methods.