Percutaneous repair of an iatrogenic laceration of the left bile duct with a covered stent.

The presence of biliary leaks after liver resections is not an unusual problem, especially after extended hepatectomies. The usual treatment of choice for biliary duct injuries is to decompress the biliary system with draining catheters. Persistent biliary fistulas are nevertheless a challenging problem when endoscopic or percutaneous approaches fail to achieve occlusion of the bile leakage. The authors report a bile duct injury after a right lobe hepatectomy treated percutaneously with placement of a covered stent. After 6 months, the patient was tube-free and without any episode of cholangitis or bile duct dilation. Longer follow-up will clarify the future role of this kind of device in biliary system lacerations.