Outcomes of delayed versus early endoscopic intervention for acute biliary pancreatitis with non-severe acute cholangitis

Abstract

Abstract Background Despite previous studies on endoscopic interventions in patients with acute biliary pancreatitis (ABP), the optimal time to perform endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for ABP with non-severe acute cholangitis (AC) remains controversial. Methods We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of patients with concurrent ABP and non-severe AC. The patients were divided into two groups: those who underwent ERCP ≤ 72 h after admission (early ERCP group) and those who underwent ERCP > 72 h after admission (delayed ERCP group). The primary outcomes were the technical success rate and ERCP-related complications. Results The study involved 164 patients (early ERCP, n = 70; delayed ERCP, n = 94) who were treated from 1 December 2 to 2016 to 12 December 2021. The patients’ baseline characteristics were not significantly different between the two groups. The technical success rate of ERCP was similar between the two groups (94.29% vs. 97.87%, p = 0.43). Morbidity was also similar between the two groups (p = 0.83). There was no significant difference in the total hospital stay (p = 0.13). However, the early ERCP group had a longer post-ERCP hospital stay (p < 0.001). Conclusion This retrospective analysis showed that delayed ERCP performed > 72 h after admission has economic and safety outcomes similar to those of early ERCP for patients with concurrent ABP and non-severe AC.