Safety and efficacy of microwave ablation for periductal hepatocellular carcinoma with intraductal cooling of the central bile ducts through a percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage tube

Background and aims: Biliary thermal injury caused by microwave ablation (MWA) for a hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) close to the central bile ducts always results in severe complications and leads to mortality. Some studies have demonstrated that intraductal cooling of the biliary tract with chilled saline during thermal ablation can successfully prevent these complications. In this study, we present a novel bile duct cooling technique through a percutaneous transhepatic cholangial drainage (PTCD) tube for preventing biliary thermal injury caused by MWA, and compare the feasibility and safety of the intraductal cooling technique when performed with a PTCD tube and with an endoscopic nasobiliary drainage (ENBD) tube. Methods: Participants were randomly assigned to undergo MWA of HCC with intraductal chilled saline perfusion through a PTCD tube or an ENBD tube. The main study outcomes were bile duct complications related to MWA and local tumor recurrence. p value