Roles of endoscopic sphincterotomy and cholecystectomy in acute biliary pancreatitis

Background/Aims: We evaluated the natural course of biliary pancreatitis and compared the results obtained using endoscopic sphincterotomy (EST) and cholecystectomy. Methodology: The medical records of 113 patients with biliary pancreatitis between January 1990 and April 2005 were analyzed retrospectively. Results: Twenty-five patients received no treatment and 15 (60.0%) of these experienced recurrence during a mean follow-up period of 36.0 months. Fifty-two received EST only, and no recurrence occurred during a mean follow-up of 29.8 months. Thirty-six patients underwent cholecystectomy and 1 (2.8%) patient experienced the second attack during a follow-up of 35.2 months. Acute cholecystitis developed in 7 of 77 (9.1%) patients who did not receive cholecystectomy during a mean follow-up period of 33.3 months, and was found to be prone to develop in patients with both gall bladder (GB) and common bile duct (CBD) stones. Conclusions: Sixty percent of patients with biliary pancreatitis experienced relapses without treatment, and cholecystectomy with or without EST tended to reduce recurrence. Cholecystectomy might not be a routine treatment after EST especially in the old because the incidence of acute cholecystitis was relatively low within 3 years and be recommended for patients with both visible GB and CBD stones at presentation.