Corel Medical Series: Cancer/Corel Medical Series: Cancer.iso/pc/program/c03.dxr/00032_SRC.C03.C.7.txt

Text File | 1997-01-28 | 1.3 KB | 17 lines

• Prothrombin Time and Partial Thromboplastin Time (PT and PTT) are tests of clotting that may reveal a
  disorder in patients with poor liver function caused by an obstructed bile duct.

Imaging
• Abdominal ultrasound images of the gall bladder and bile ducts may reveal an enlargement of the bile ducts
  behind the blockage, since these channels will enlarge (dilate) when the pressure within the drainage system
  increases.
• PTC (percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography) involves taking an x-ray after a dye has been injected
  through the skin into the bile ducts. This can make a "road map" of the bile ducts within and outside the liver
  and may establish the site of the blockage.
• ERCP (endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography) may be done to investigate the cause of an elevated
  bilirubin. This technically difficult procedure involves passing an endoscope through the mouth and into the
  small intestines. The physician operating this scope (endoscopist) identifies the site within the intestine
  where the bile and pancreatic ducts empty their contents. By injecting dye into this opening and doing an
  x-ray, a "road map" of the bile ducts may be made. PTC and ERCP may both be necessary to completely
  define the site and cause of an obstruction, and will correctly predict the presence of a cancer about 90 percent
  of the time.