The rational use of drains after cholecystectomy.

A study of patients who had a cholecystectomy compared the use of sump drains and Penrose drains. Sump drains were removed as soon as the indication for the presence of the drain no longer existed. Penrose drains were managed in the traditional way. The safety of early drain removal in selected patients was demonstrated. This technique offers most of the advantage and little of the risk of omitting drains entirely. The length of hospital stay for those patients who underwent a cholecystectomy can be significantly shortened by this technique;