Effects of cholecystectomy on recurrent biliary complications after endoscopic treatment of common bile duct stone: a population-based cohort study

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefits of cholecystectomy on mitigating recurrent biliary complications following endoscopic treatment of common bile duct stone. Methods: We used the data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database to conduct a population-based cohort study. Among 925 patients who received endoscopic treatment for choledocholithiasis at the first admission from 2005 to 2012, 422 received subsequent cholecystectomy and 503 had gallbladder (GB) left in situ. After propensity score matching with 1:1 ratio, the cumulative incidence of recurrent biliary complication and overall survival was analyzed with Cox’s proportional hazards model. The primary endpoint of this study is recurrent biliary complications, which require intervention. Results: After matching, 378 pairs of patients were identified with a median follow-up time of 53 (1–108) months. The recurrent rate of biliary complications was 8.20% in the cholecystectomy group and 24.87% in the GB in situ group (p OpenSPiltSPi 0.001). In the multivariate Cox regression analysis, the only independent risk factor for recurrent biliary complications was GB left in situ (hazard ratio [HR] 3.55, 95% CI 2.36–5.33). Conclusions: Cholecystectomy after endoscopic treatment of common bile duct stone reduced the prevalence of recurrent biliary complications.