Blockage of the bile ducts is considered obstruction and blockage of the channels going from the liver to the gall bladder, and then to the intestine. This is a kind of mechanical obstacle that occurs due to stone or as a result of external compression of the ducts. Pathology is characterized by its causes, symptoms and consequences, which you should be aware of in order to correctly identify the disease and undergo a full course of treatment.
Causes of blockage
Let us consider in more detail the description of the blockage of the bile duct.
Bile is produced in the liver, then stored in the gall bladder, and then used in the intestine. After eating, a small portion of bile goes directly to the intestine from the duodenum, where it digests fats, especially animal origin, and vitamins. The remaining bile, as a rule, remains in the gall bladder.
In medicine, partial or complete obstruction of the biliary tract is distinguished. The following factors may be responsible for the occurrence of blockage of the common bile duct:
- Cysts, stones in the bile ducts that get stuck in them in whole or in part clog the lumen.
- Scars with strictures in the ducts.
- Various parasitic infestations.
Obstruction of the pathways can be caused by diseases such as cholangitis and cholecystitis along with chronic pancreatitis, pancreatic tumors, infections of the liver and intestines, recent operations on these organs and injuries of the right half of the abdominal cavity. Fluctuations in body weight along with obesity or too rapid weight loss can be the cause of blockage.
What are the signs of blockage of the bile ducts, consider below.
Blockage pathogenesis
When passing through blocked ducts, bile cannot advance at normal speed. Because of this, it accumulates in the place where there is an obstacle, while stretching the walls of the elastic tube. Very often, inflammation soon develops in this area, due to which the mucous membrane is greatly thickened, which in turn also causes a decrease in the diameter of the ducts.
Then bile is absorbed and serous fluid is released. This liquid is called white bile. This phenomenon indicates a significant damage to the liver tissue, due to which there is a malfunction of the functions of this organ along with a disorder of carbohydrate and fat metabolism and pathological changes in the internal organs, for example, in the kidneys and heart.
The causes and symptoms of blockage of the bile duct are interrelated.
Directly in the liver itself, in the event that a blockage occurs in it, the accumulated bile affects its cells in a toxic way, against the background of which bile acids and bilirubin cause their destruction. Long bile stasis causes severe pathologies of this organ, up to the development of liver failure. In addition, bile substances are able to penetrate into the blood, causing its intoxication along with damage to blood vessels and organs of the body.
Symptomatology
Symptoms of blockage of the bile ducts include various components. For example, the following manifestations may be observed:
- The occurrence of skin itching and rashes.
- Staining of the skin and sclera in yellow.
- The appearance of bitterness in the mouth, and in addition, plaque in the tongue.
- Bad breath.
- The occurrence of pain in the right hypochondrium.
- The appearance of a headache.
- An increase in the abdomen and slowing of the pulse.
- Slowing blood coagulation processes.
- Light and extremely unpleasant smelling stool.
- Dark urine stained with bilirubin.
What happens in advanced stages?
In advanced cases of the disease, patients may experience swelling along with sweating, and in addition, intellectual impairment. Since other symptoms of the digestive system may also be manifested by this symptomatology, the diagnosis is established only after special diagnostic procedures have been carried out.
Diagnosis of the disease
To diagnose blockage of the gallbladder duct in patients, a biochemical blood test is taken and cholangitis with cholecystitis is excluded based on the results, the total amount of bilirubin, liver enzymes, as well as alkaline phosphatase are determined. Among the hardware research methods, an ultrasound examination is prescribed, which makes it possible to determine whether there are stones and pneumobilia in the bile ducts, that is, the presence of air in them, which can occur as a complication of hepatic and biliary pathologies.
Endoscopic or laparoscopic examination
Using these techniques, the presence of cysts or stones in the bile ducts is established. Such studies are prescribed if the symptoms of the disease are not severe and there is an assumption that the pathology is still in its mild form. Diagnostic tools also involve taking a piece of tissue if cancer is suspected.
Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography allow you to see in detail detailed images of the ducts of the liver and pancreas. If the diagnosis of bile duct obstruction is confirmed, then therapy is prescribed based on the results of the study.
Pathology treatment
Treatment for blockage of the bile ducts aims to completely or at least partially release them from blocking. One of the existing options for removing stones from the ducts is the use of an endoscope as part of an endoscopic cholangiopancreatography or papillosphincterotomy. Such operations are prescribed to patients if the narrowing of the bile ducts is insignificant or they are blocked with small stones.
In addition, they restore the patency of the channels with the help of a stent, which is a hollow tube that is installed in clogged ducts. It helps to expand the duct when its narrowing is caused by a tumor. After some time, a second operation related to stent replacement may be required.
In the event that a blockage of the bile duct was provoked by stones in the gallbladder, then it is removed, this operation is called cholecystectomy. Sphincterotomy of the ducts is used when stones are present in the bile and ducts at the same time.
In addition, they also use traditional medicine for treatment. In order to stabilize the outflow of bile, patients are advised to take:
- A glass of apple juice with a spoonful of vinegar.
- A glass of water with four tablespoons of lemon juice.
- A decoction of mint.
- Juice made from one cucumber and beetroot, as well as four carrots.
Any of these medicines should be drunk daily for at least two weeks to get the result. But it should be borne in mind that alternative treatment for blockage of the bile duct cannot be a substitute for the traditional, but only complements it.
Prophylaxis
In order to prevent blockage, the appearance of diseases of the biliary tract and liver should be prevented. First of all, prophylaxis of gallstone disease is required . To do this, do the following:
- Use only healthy, but at the same time complete nutrition.
- Maintain a healthy lifestyle in general. Such a measure will prevent many different diseases that provoke the appearance of barriers to the bile duct. Tumors along with scars, commissures, narrowing and the like often turn out to be such barriers.
In order to protect yourself from the appearance of diseases of the digestive system, which in turn can provoke a blockage of the bile ducts, the diet must be observed not from time to time, but throughout life. The most important canons are:
- It is required to take food in a timely manner, whether it is breakfast, dinner or lunch. It is very important to observe the proportions of the products taken. Avoid consuming excessive amounts of food in the evenings.
- Be sure to enter the daily diet of hot foods, such as soups.
- Important is the complete rejection of unhealthy foods in the form of hot dogs, fried street pies, french fries, branded carbonated drinks.
- It is imperative to exclude from your diet food that is harmful to the biliary tract. First of all, this is fatty foods in the form of meat, sour cream, borsch and fried foods. You can not get carried away with spicy foods with an abundance of black and red hot peppers and other seasonings. Extractive foods that enhance the secretion of digestive enzymes and bile should also be discarded, so you cannot eat saturated broths.
In the event that pathologies of the biliary tract and liver nevertheless have arisen, then it is necessary to diagnose and cure them in a timely manner, since sooner or later they can lead to blockage of the bile ducts.
Disease prognosis
The prognosis for symptoms of bile duct obstruction is usually favorable, provided that the patient is promptly diagnosed and provided with the necessary assistance. The prognosis may be difficult in a number of the following cases:
- Against the background of cancerous lesions of the common bile duct. Such a diagnosis worsens the course of the disease and complicates the treatment.
- Attachment of infection and the occurrence of purulent processes in the bile ducts and gall bladder.
- Against the background of hasty surgical treatment in a serious condition of the patient in the event that infusion treatment was not carried out.
- In the case of self-medication at home with the involvement of folk methods.
Possible complications
Often, complications of blockage by a stone of the bile duct arise if timely surgical therapy is not carried out for the patient. Mostly blockage often leads to the following complications:
- The occurrence of sepsis, against the background of which an infection spreads throughout the body.
- The appearance of bilirubin encephalopathy. In this case, brain tissue is affected by bilirubin in patients, since the amount of this element in the body is significantly increased.
- The appearance of cirrhosis of the liver.
- The development of acute liver failure. This occurs against the background of complete blockage of the ducts.
- The appearance of chronic liver failure. This occurs against the background of partial blockage of the ducts.
Information in conclusion
Thus, blockage of the bile ducts is a deterioration or complete cessation of their patency against the background of the obstruction of the flow of bile from the liver into the gallbladder. This disease is considered extremely unpleasant, and in complex cases it also carries a danger in the form of various complications, against which all kinds of diseases of the digestive system may appear. Given the seriousness of this pathology, in no case can its appearance be ignored and, if the slightest symptomatology occurs, it is imperative to consult your doctor.
We reviewed the symptoms and treatment of bile duct obstruction.