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Clinical Trial Details — Status: Terminated

Administrative data

NCT number NCT00124033
Other study ID # 04/001
Secondary ID
Status Terminated
Phase N/A
First received July 25, 2005
Last updated September 7, 2006
Start date March 2004
Est. completion date December 2015

Study information

Verified date June 2005
Source South West Sydney Local Health District
Contact n/a
Is FDA regulated No
Health authority Australia: National Health and Medical Research Council
Study type Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

This study is designed to assess whether a new technique called facilitated endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) is or is not superior to conventional ERCP for removing stones found in the bile duct at the time of laparoscopic cholecystectomy. ERCP is an endoscopic procedure used to facilitate the radiological examination and subsequent manipulation of the common bile duct (eg. opening it up, which is called sphincterotomy). Both facilitated and conventional ERCP are performed as a separate procedure after the initial gallbladder surgery. This is a comparative study of these two techniques in a randomised clinical trial.

The aim of this randomised clinical trial is to enable surgeons to decide whether placement of a plastic stent at the time of laparoscopic cholecystectomy will improve the success rate and safety of subsequent ERCP and sphincterotomy.


Description:

Symptomatic gallstone disease is common. In the year July 2001-2002, laparoscopic cholecystectomy was performed on 5,235 patients in NSW public hospitals. Up to 18% of patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy for gallstones may have concomitant common bile duct stones (choledocholithiasis). Twenty-five percent of bile duct stones are completely unsuspected. Therefore the optimal management of bile duct stones is a significant issue for all general surgeons who perform this very common operation. Yet, the management of these patients in the laparoscopic era remains contentious.

Prior to the laparoscopic era cholecystectomy patients with bile duct stones were managed surgically during open cholecystectomy (OC), with direct exploration of their common bile duct (choledochotomy). However, open surgical bile duct exploration waned in popularity and progressively stones were dealt with endoscopically, either pre or post cholecystectomy. As laparoscopic technology advances, simultaneous clearance of the bile duct at the time of laparoscopic cholecystectomy is regaining popularity.

Some surgeons elect to remove bile duct stones at the index operation through the cystic duct. This approach has a success rate of between 75 and 90%. When there is failure to clear the bile duct transcystically, some surgeons proceed to a choledochotomy to clear the duct, while others close the cystic duct stump, leaving the stones in situ to be removed at a later date by endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) and sphincterotomy. The argument in favour of immediate choledochotomy is that the duct may be cleared in one sitting. The argument against it is that the morbidity of choledochotomy is considerable. The argument for a subsequent ERCP is that the morbidity of choledochotomy is avoided. The argument against subsequent ERCP is that there may be difficulty cannulating the common bile duct and that ERCP with sphincterotomy is associated with a significant morbidity, particularly pancreatitis.

An alternative approach taken by the majority of surgeons in NSW when confronted by common bile duct stones at laparoscopic cholecystectomy is to close the cystic duct stump in all patients, without exploring the duct transcystically. Stones are left in situ, to be removed at a later date endoscopically - by ERCP and sphincterotomy. The attendant risks of this approach are mentioned above.

Another approach is to facilitate the performance of post-operative ERCP and sphincterotomy by inserting a stent transcystically at the time of laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Facilitated ERCP has recently been reported in a prospective consecutive series from Nepean Hospital. Failure to access the common bile duct at first attempt was 1.2% in this series, which compares favourably with duct access failure rates - reported in the literature - of 5-12% without the facilitation of a stent. The incidence of pancreatitis, bleeding and duodenal perforation after facilitated ERCP was 0%, 0% and 0.6%, respectively. Two cases (1.2%) of cholangitis were also reported. Comparison to other series suggests that facilitated ERCP offers real advantages over the conventional unfacilitated ERCP for bile duct stone removal, which has a reported pancreatitis rate of 2–11% (and our own rate of 8%); a bleeding rate of 2-4 % and a duodenal perforation rate of 1-4%. The mortality rates of these ERCP techniques cannot be compared at this preliminary stage because of insufficient numbers in the Nepean series.


Recruitment information / eligibility

Status Terminated
Enrollment 340
Est. completion date December 2015
Est. primary completion date
Accepts healthy volunteers No
Gender Both
Age group 18 Years to 85 Years
Eligibility Inclusion Criteria:

- The patient must be able to give informed consent preoperatively (i.e. elective procedures only)

- Patients at higher than normal risk of having CBD stones identified at OC. For example: *CBD stones identified at ultrasound; *Wide CBD (>6mm) at ultrasound; *Previous, recent, current cholangitis, jaundice, or biliary pancreatitis; or *Abnormal AST and ALT levels (>2 times normal).

Exclusion Criteria:

- Pregnancy at time of surgery

- Patients not fit for surgery. For example: *Those with acute cholecystitis or persistent obstructive jaundice; *Patients who have had a previous ERCP and sphincterotomy; or *Patients in whom intervention was not technically possible (eg. previous Billroth II gastrectomy).

Study Design

Allocation: Randomized, Endpoint Classification: Safety/Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment, Masking: Open Label, Primary Purpose: Educational/Counseling/Training


Intervention

Procedure:
Transcystic Stenting (Facilitated ERCP)


Locations

Country Name City State
Australia Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital Bankstown New South Wales
Australia Royal Prince Alfred Hospital Camperdown New South Wales
Australia Dubbo Base Hospital Dubbo New South Wales
Australia Gosford Hospital Gosford New South Wales
Australia Blue Mountains District ANZAC Memorial Hospital Katoomba New South Wales
Australia Nepean Hospital Kingswood New South Wales
Australia St George Hospital Kogarah New South Wales
Australia Liverpool Hospital Liverpool New South Wales
Australia John Hunter Hospital New Lambton New South Wales
Australia Prince of Wales Hospital Randwick New South Wales
Australia Royal North Shore Hospital St Leonards New South Wales
Australia Westmead Hospital Westmead New South Wales
Australia Hawkesbury District Health Service Windsor New South Wales

Sponsors (7)

Lead Sponsor Collaborator
South West Sydney Local Health District Catholic Health Care Services, Greater Western Area Health Service, Hunter New England Area Health Service, Northern Sydney and Central Coast Area Health Service, South Eastern Area Health Service, Sydney South West Area Health Service

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Australia, 

References & Publications (1)

Martin CJ, Cox MR, Vaccaro L. Laparoscopic transcystic bile duct stenting in the management of common bile duct stones. ANZ J Surg. 2002 Apr;72(4):258-64. — View Citation

Outcome

Type Measure Description Time frame Safety issue
Primary Safety of facilitated ERCP compared to conventional unfacilitated ERCP - as assessed by the incidence of pancreatitis post ERCP
Secondary The success rate and morbidity of transcystic exploration for common bile duct stone removal across a broad spectrum of surgeons
Secondary The success rate of transcystic stent placement across a broad spectrum of surgeons
Secondary The overall morbidity of post-operative ERCP, with further comparisons of the morbidity of facilitated and conventional ERCP, with and without transcystic exploration of the common bile duct to remove stones
Secondary Hospitalisation time according to treatment group
Secondary The incidence of hyperamylasemia after transcystic exploration of the common bile duct, transcystic insertion of a stent or transcystic cholangiography alone
Secondary The success rate and complications after choledochotomy for common bile duct stones
Secondary The failure rate of selective common bile duct cannulation for facilitated ERCP as compared to conventional ERCP
Secondary Incidence of multiple endoscopic procedures when the common bile duct was not explored at the primary operation and whether or not this is affected by facilitation at ERCP
Secondary Long-term efficacy of techniques used to remove common bile duct stones, as measured by the recurrence of stones in the bile duct
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