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World J Gastrointest Surg. Aug 27, 2026; 18(8): 117878
Published online Aug 27, 2026. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.117878
Published online Aug 27, 2026. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.117878
Predictors of the technical success of ultrasound-guided percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage for biliary obstruction
Yun Song, Jian Du, Department of General Surgery, Suining Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine (Affiliated with North Sichuan Medical College), Suining 629000, Sichuan Province, China
Yun Song, Jian Du, School of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, North Sichuan Medical College, Suining 629000, Sichuan Province, China
Guang-Hai Chen, Department of General Surgery, Suining Central Hospital, Suining 629000, Sichuan Province, China
Lu Peng, Department of Emergency, Suining Central Hospital, Suining 629000, Sichuan Province, China
Lu Peng, Clinical School of Medicine, North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong 637000, Sichuan Province, China
Shu-Ming Tan, Department of Ultrasound Medicine, Ziyang Central Hospital (Affiliated with West China Hospital, Sichuan University), Ziyang 641300, Sichuan Province, China
Author contributions: Song Y contributed to conceptualization, study design and theoretical framework; Chen CH contributed to experimental design; Peng L contributed to statistical modeling, computational analysis and interpretation; Du J contributed to investigation; Tan SM contributed to data collection and validation; all authors contributed to critical revision and final approval.
AI contribution statement: DeepSeek was used for translation and AJE (human editing) for polishing. No AI was used for any other purpose.
Institutional review board statement: This study was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of Suining Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine (Approval No. 2025080).
Informed consent statement: Patient consent was waived by the approving Institutional Review Board (Suining Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Approval No. 2025080) because this was a retrospective study analyzing anonymized patient data. All patient data were de-identified prior to analysis to ensure confidentiality.
Conflict-of-interest statement: There are no financial interests/personal relationships that may be construed as potential conflicts of interest.
Data sharing statement: De-identified datasets are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request, subject to institutional data sharing agreements.
Corresponding author: Lu Peng, Department of Emergency, Suining Central Hospital, No. 27 Dongping North Road, Hedong New District, Suining 629000, Sichuan Province, China.
Received: December 18, 2025
Revised: February 1, 2026
Accepted: May 27, 2026
Published online: August 27, 2026
Processing time: 241 Days and 16.1 Hours
Revised: February 1, 2026
Accepted: May 27, 2026
Published online: August 27, 2026
Processing time: 241 Days and 16.1 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This multicenter study established the first evidence-based clinical decision-making framework for predicting technical success in ultrasound-guided percutaneous transhepatic biliary drainage (PTBD). Key actionable determinants were identified: Operator experience (> 20 procedures), bile duct diameter (≥ 6 mm), and the severity of obstruction (bilirubin > 340 μmol/L). The framework also defines a safe procedural limit (≤ 2 attempts) and identifies the use of de