Bile duct obstruction Health Article

Definition

Bile duct obstruction is a blockage in the tubes that carry a liquid called bile from the liver to the gallbladder and small intestine.

Alternative Names

Biliary obstruction

Causes, incidence, and risk factors

Bile is a liquid secreted by the liver that contains cholesterol, bile salts, and waste products such as bilirubin. Bile salts aid in the digestion of fats. Bile passes out of the liver through the bile ducts and is concentrated and stored in the gallbladder until it is released into the small intestine after a meal to help with fat digestion.

When the bile ducts become blocked, bile accumulates in the liver, and jaundice (yellow color of the skin) develops due to the accumulation of bilirubin in the blood.

The possible causes of a blocked bile duct include:

• Gallstones
• Tumors of the bile ducts or pancreas
• Other tumors that have spread to the biliary system
• Trauma including injury from gallbladder surgery
• Choledochal cysts
• Enlarged nodes in the porta hepatis
• Inflammation of the bile ducts

The risk factors include:

• A history of gallstones, chronic pancreatitis, or Pancreatic cancer
• Recent biliary surgery
• Recent biliary cancer (such as bile duct cancer)
• Abdominal trauma.

In immunosuppressed patients, the blockage can be caused by infections.

Symptoms

• Pale-colored stools (caused by lack of bilirubin)
• Dark urine (caused by bilirubin excreted in the urine)
• Jaundice (yellow skin color)
• Itching
• Abdominal pain in the upper right quadrant
• Fever
• Nausea and vomiting

Signs and tests

Your health care provider will examine your abdomen and may be able to feel the gallbladder.

The following blood test results could indicate a possible blockage:

• Elevated bilirubin
• Elevated alkaline phosphatase
• Elevated liver enzymes

• Abdominal ultrasound
• Abdominal CT scan
• ERCP (endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography)
• Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiogram (PTCA)
• Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP)

• Gallbladder radionuclide scan
• Urine bilirubin
• Amylase