ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND/AIMS: There has been a lot of controversy about the treatment methods in the management of residual & recurrent biliary stones. So we performed the study to clarify the important factors in choosing the treatment modality of the residual & recurrent biliary stones. METHODS: 154 patients who were diagnosed as residual or recurrent biliary stone between January 1995 and August 2000 were divided into 4 groups according to their first re- treatment methods (surgery, stone removal via T-tube, PTBD*, ESTP**) and analyzed the results of these treatments to determine what is the significant factor affecting the prognoses. RESULTS: The necessity of the second re-treatment for residual & recurrent stones was affected by the complete- ness of stone removal only, and no other factors affected it in view of multivariate analysis. The rate of residual & recurrent stones among the patients who have had the first operation in our department was 6.7%. Furthermore the clearance rate of residual & recurrent stones was relatively high value (82.2%), as a result of multidisciplinary treatments. CONCLUSION: Thus, as long as the residual stones can be removed completely, any treatment modality can be applied to these patients. We don't have to insist on surgery.