Research summary, original research, 2019

Management of difficult bile duct stones and indeterminate bile duct structures: Reduced ERCP radiation exposure with adjunct use of digital single-operator cholangioscopy

Tsapaki V, Papastergiou V, Giannakopoulos A, Angelogiannopoulou P, Delatolas V, Triantopoulou S, et al.. Physica medica : PM : an international journal devoted to the applications of physics to medicine and biology : official journal of the Italian Association of Biomedical Physics (AIFB). 2019

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In plain language

In 47 endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) patients with difficult stones or strictures, adding digital cholangioscopy was associated with lower patient dose-area product and shorter fluoroscopy time. Staff dose was not measured, though less fluoroscopy likely means less exposure for the endoscopy team.

At a glance

Type of study
Original research, Retrospective cohort study
Who was studied
Patients
Size
n = 47 patients
Summary based on
the abstract

What it found

  • Median kerma area product was much lower when digital single-operator cholangioscopy was used adjunctively with ERCP than with conventional ERCP.

    Key figures: 12.3 Gycm2 vs 52.1 Gycm2; P = 0.0001

  • Median fluoroscopy time was roughly halved with adjunct cholangioscopy.

    Key figures: 3.7 min vs 8.4 min; P = 0.0001

  • Number of films differed little between groups and was not reported as significant.

    Key figures: 4 vs 5 films

  • The cohort comprised 47 patients with difficult bile duct stones or indeterminate strictures.

    Key figures: 47 patients (ERCP 29, ERCP/D-SOC 18)

Limits to keep in mind

Small, single-database retrospective comparison of non-randomized cohorts with possible case-selection differences; only patient dose metrics were measured, not staff dose.

How this summary was made

ORSIF prepared this summary with AI assistance from the abstract of the paper. A program then checked that the passage supporting each finding appears word for word in that source. A person has not yet reviewed each summary, so read the original before relying on a number. ORSIF summarizes research and does not endorse any product or company. Report a problem with this summary.

Prepared November 3, 2026.