Biliary duct obstruction is an important clinical condition that stems from cholelithiasis, the neoplasm in the wall or, most commonly, gallbladder stones. The objective of this study is to understand the structural and mechanical remodeling of the common bile duct (CBD) postobstruction. Porcine CBD was ligated near the duodenum that increased the duct's pressure from 6.4 to 18.3 cmH_2O in the first 12 h and to 30.7 cmH_2O after 32 days. The remodeling process was studied after 3 h, 12 h, 2 days, 8 days, and 32 days (n = 5 in each group) after obstruction. One additional animal in each group was sham operated. At each scheduled time, the time course of change of morphometry (diameter, length, wall thickness, etc.) and mechanical properties (stress, strain, etc.) was documented. It was found that the diameter increased by about threefold and the wall thickness of the CBD doubled in the 32-day group compared with the sham group (P < 0.001).
展开▼