Abdominal Interventional Procedures
- Abdominal Interventional Procedures - Home
- Abdominal Intervention for Liver Transplant Candidates
- Abscess Drainage using Minimally Invasive Surgical Solutions and Procedures and Abscess Drainage
- Gastrostomy - Minimally Invasive Surgical Solutions and Procedures and Gastrostomy
- Needle Biopsy Procedure offered by Minimally Invasive Surgical Solutions and Procedures
- Nephrostomy - Minimally Invasive Surgical Solutions and Procedures and Nephrostomy
- TIPS: Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunts by MISS
Biliary Catheters - Bile Drainage and Biliary Tube Care
A biliary catheter, or biliary tube, is a tube that goes through your skin and liver into your bile ducts to drain your bile, a fluid that aids in the digestion of food. Reasons for needing a biliary tube include blockage of the bile ducts, the presence of a hole in the bile ducts, and as preparation for surgery on the bile ducts. In some cases, the bile drains out of your body into a drainage bag. In other cases, the catheter drains the bile into the bowel, and you do not need a bag on the outside.
Possible Problems and Complications
The main problem that can occur with your biliary tube is infecion: skin infection around the catheter or bile duct infection. A skin infection can be prevented by taking good care of the skin around the catheter. It is important that you follow these instructions (unless instructed otherwise by your doctor):
- Keep the skin around your biliary catheter dry. You can take showers if you cover the area with plastic wrap. If the area does get wet, dry the skin completely after you shower.
- Keep the skin around your biliary catheter clean. Clean the area every day or every other day with a cotton swab that has been moistened with peroxide. Always wash your hands before you clean the catheter site.
- Keep the skin around your biliary catheter covered. After cleaning the skin around the catheter insertion site, cover the area with a clean bandage or dressing. Change the dressing if it gets wet.
Signs of skin infection include redness, soreness, and swelling of the skin around the catheter. If you notice any of these signs, even if they are very mild, you should follow these instructions unless your doctor specifies otherwise:
- Clean the site more often than before.
- Apply antibiotic ointment to the skin around the catheter after each time you clean it.
- If your symptoms DO improve promptly, keep up the extra care for a total of one week, and then go back to your usual skin care routine.
A bile duct infection occurs if the biliary tube becomes blocked. The best way to avoid this is to flush your biliary tube with sterile saline solution once a day. Flushing with saline keeps the inside of the tube as clean as possible. If your biliary catheter drains bile into an external drainage bag, rinse the bag out with water every day. Lastly, keep your appointments to have your biliary tube changed. It is much easier to replace the catheter than it is to place the original one, and the change can usually be done as an outpatient procedure. Biliary tube changes are typically done every 2-3 months.
If you notice leakage of bile around the biliary tube, this may be a sign that the catheter is blocked. Blockage is frequently accompanied by biliary duct infection; symptoms of this include fever and chills. If you think that your biliary tube may be blocked, contact your interventional radiologist and/or primary care physician immediately. These doctors will arrange for prompt treatment of your problem. In most cases, you will need to have your biliary tube changed, and you may need antibiotic medicine.