Clinical Practice
Copyright ©2013 Baishideng. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Apr 16, 2013; 1(1): 19-24
Published online Apr 16, 2013. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v1.i1.19
Endoscopic papillary balloon dilation for difficult common bile duct stones: Our experience
Maddalena Zippi, Isabella De Felici, Roberta Pica, Giampiero Traversa, Giuseppe Occhigrossi
Maddalena Zippi, Isabella De Felici, Roberta Pica, Giampiero Traversa, Giuseppe Occhigrossi, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, Sandro Pertini Hospital, 00157 Rome, Italy
Author contributions: Traversa G and Zippi M made a substantial contribution to the study conception and design; De Felici I and Pica R were involved in the acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data; Traversa G and Zippi M were involved in drafting the article and revising it critically for important intellectual content; Occhigrossi G gave the final approval of the version to be published.
Correspondence to: Maddalena Zippi, MD, Unit of Gastroenterology and Digestive Endoscopy, Sandro Pertini Hospital, Via dei Monti Tiburtini 385, 00157 Rome, Italy. maddyzip@yahoo.it
Telephone: +39-6-41433310 Fax: +39-6-41735005
Received: December 21, 2012
Revised: February 12, 2013
Accepted: March 21, 2013
Published online: April 16, 2013
Core Tip

Core tip: Choledocholithiasis is frequently found in the adult population. Endoscopic sphincterotomy (ES) is considered the standard therapy for the treatment of this condition. However, several complications are associated with ES. Endoscopic balloon dilation (EBD) is actually recognized as an alternative to ES for the extraction of difficult bile duct stones. Reading the literature, we have found that most of the studies use small diameter balloons (6-10 mm), while the ones using larger balloons (from 12-20 mm) are rare. The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of large EBD performed for common bile duct difficult stones.