Having percutaneous biliary drainage
Draining blocked bile ducts
Percutaneous biliary drainage is a minimally invasive procedure through the skin to drain blocked bile ducts.
Preparing for the procedure
Most people having percutaneous biliary drainage are on a ward in hospital. You need some blood tests before the procedure, but may already be having regular tests.
The IR doctor and nurse see you before the procedure and assess your health.
There are some things that can help you to prepare for the procedure.
Tips to prepare for your procedure
Do
- Tell us in advance if you need a hoist (piece of medical equipment to help lift or move you safely), transport or a translator.
- Arrive 15 minutes before your appointment (if you are not staying in hospital). This allows time to prepare.
- Ask us any questions that you would like before you sign the hospital consent form agreeing to have the procedure.
- Be prepared to tell the IR doctor and nurse which medicines you take. It is useful to carry a list of your medicines or a recent prescription with you.
- Follow the advice of the IR doctor and nurse about which of your regular medicines you can take before the procedure.
Don't
- Do not eat or drink anything (except water) for 6 hours before the procedure. This means that you cannot suck sweets or chew gum. You can drink water until 2 hours before the procedure.
Giving your permission (consent)
We want to involve you in decisions about your care and treatment. If you decide to have a percutaneous biliary drainage procedure, we will ask you to sign a consent form. This says that you understand what is involved and agree to have the treatment.
You can read more about our consent process.
During the procedure
The procedure is usually done under sedation. This means that we give you medicines into a vein to make you feel relaxed, together with strong painkillers.
We also give you a local anaesthetic medicine. You then stay awake for the procedure, but the medicine makes the skin around the drain numb.
Some people have a general anaesthetic, where they go to sleep for the procedure. However, this is not usually necessary.
The procedure takes about 1 to 2 hours.
What happens during the procedure
- We ask you to lie on your back for the procedure.
- The nurses attach equipment to monitor your blood pressure and heart throughout the procedure.
- We put a small, flexible, plastic drainage tube directly through the liver and into the bile ducts. The drain is placed between the lower right-hand ribs or through space between the ribcage at the top of the tummy.
- Sometimes, we can pass the drain through the blockage and into the small bowel. If the drain cannot pass the blockage, we will leave it just above the point of blockage.
- After the procedure, one end of the drain stays in the bile duct and the other end sits outside the skin. The tube outside the skin is connected to a drainage bag, which collects the bile.
- While the bile is being drained, we take X-ray pictures of the bile ducts. This test is called a percutaneous transhepatic cholangiogram (PTC ). We use the X-ray pictures to plan your future treatment.
Resource number: 0247/VER6
Last reviewed: November 2023
Next review due: November 2026
A list of sources is available on request.
