Published online Aug 7, 2009. doi: 10.3748/wjg.15.3660
Revised: June 19, 2009
Accepted: June 26, 2009
Published online: August 7, 2009
AIM: To evaluate the short- and long-term outcomes of bilateral liver resection for bilateral intrahepatic stones.
METHODS: We reviewed retrospectively 101 consecutive patients with bilateral intrahepatic stones who underwent bilateral liver resection in the past 10 years. The short- and long-term outcomes of the patients were analyzed. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to identify the risk factors related to stone recurrence.
RESULTS: There was no surgical mortality in this group of patients. The surgical morbidity was 28.7%. Stone clearance rate after hepatectomy was 84.2% and final clearance rate was 95.0% following postoperative choledochoscopic lithotripsy. The stone recurrence rate was 7.9% and the occurrence of postoperative cholangitis was 6.5% in a median follow-up period of 54 mo. The Cox proportional hazards model indicated that liver resection range, less than the range of stone distribution (P = 0.015, OR = 2.152) was an independent risk factor linked to stone recurrence.
CONCLUSION: Bilateral liver resection is safe and its short- and long-term outcomes are satisfactory for bilateral intrahepatic stones.