Therapeutic biliary endoscopy.

Some steps of progress have been seen in the area of biliary therapeutic endoscopy, in the understanding and management of primary sclerosing cholangitis, problems relating to liver transplantation, malignant biliary strictures, complications after endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, sphincter of Oddi dysfunction, and tissue sampling. The benefits (or lack thereof) of preoperative biliary drainage in the setting of malignant obstructive jaundice have received an extensive review.