Obstructive jaundice in pancreatitis investigated by percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography.

Obstructive jaundice is a rare complication of alcoholic pancreatitis. In three patients with persistent jaundice, percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography demonstrated either stenosis and dislocation of the common bile duct due to pancreatic pseudocysts or stenosis due to pancreatic fibrosis. These stenoses were easily differentiated from obstructions due to tumours or common duct stones. We suggest that percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography is valuable in pancreatitis with jaundice.