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Biliary dyskinesia

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Opinion statement

  • Biliary dyskinesia is a motility disorder that affects the gallbladder and sphincter of Oddi.

  • The motility disorder of the gallbladder is called gallbladder dyskinesia. Patients with this condition present with biliary-type pain, and investigations show no evidence of gallstones in the gallbladder. The diagnosis is made by performing a gallbladder ejection fraction, which is a radionuclide investigation. An abnormal gallbladder ejection fraction has a value less than 40%. Patients with an abnormal gallbladder ejection fraction should undergo cholecystectomy. This procedure has been shown to be effective in curing the symptoms in over 90% of patients.

  • Motility disorder of the sphincter of Oddi is called sphincter of Oddi dysfunction. This disorder is categorized as two distinct types—biliary sphincter of Oddi dysfunction and pancreatic sphincter of Oddi dysfunction.

  • Typically, patients with biliary sphincter of Oddi dysfunction present with biliary-type pain on average 4 to 5 years after having undergone cholecystectomy. Sphincter of Oddi manometry is essential in making a diagnosis of abnormal motility of the sphincter. On manometry, diagnosis of a sphincter of Oddi stenosis should lead to division of the sphincter. Sphincterotomy results in long-term relief of symptoms in more than 80% of patients.

  • Pancreatic sphincter of Oddi dysfunction clinically presents with recurrent episodes of pancreatitis of unknown cause. Having ruled out all of the common causes of pancreatitis, sphincter of Oddi manometry of the pancreatic duct sphincter should be performed. When manometric stenosis is diagnosed, these patients should undergo division of both the biliary and pancreatic duct sphincter. This treatment results in relief of symptoms in more than 80% of patients.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Flinders Medical Centre, Flinders University of South Australia, 5042, Bedford, Park, South Australia, Australia

    James Toouli MBBS, PhD, FRAS (Professor of Surgery)

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  1. James Toouli MBBS, PhD, FRAS
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Toouli, J. Biliary dyskinesia. Curr Treat Options Gastro 5, 285–291 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11938-002-0051-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11938-002-0051-9

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