Surgical morbidity and mortality in one hundred and twenty-nine patients with obstructive jaundice

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Abstract
One hundred and twenty-nine jaundiced patients were operated upon for the relief of benign and malignant bile duct obstruction during a 10-year period, 1977–86. The overall mortality was 4·7 per cent but increased to 9·1 per cent in patients with a serum bilirubin > 300 μmol/l. In all, 46·5 per cent of patients had a rise in postoperative creatinine but renal dysfunction occurred in only 4·7 per cent. Wound infection developed in 3·1 per cent of patients and appeared unrelated to infected bile; 3·9 per cent of patients were treated for postoperative septicaemic episodes. The low morbidity and mortality observed suggests that pre-operative biliary drainage need not be considered in routine surgical practice if simple measures to maintain urine flow and prevent postoperative sepsis are used.