Abstract
Intrapancreatic bile duct stenosis is frequently observed in autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP). However, it is not known whether the cause of stenosis is extrinsic compression due to pancreatic inflammation or bile duct wall thickness due to sclerosing cholangitis. Thus, we analyzed the findings of intraductal ultrasonography in 19 patients which presented intrapancreatic bile duct stenosis. Although bile duct wall thickness is observed in 15 of 19 patients (79%), the cause of stenosis is thought to be extrinsic compression in 11 of 19 patients (58%). Serial cholangiography after corticosteroid therapy showed incomplete remission of intrapancreatic bile duct stenosis in 15 of 16 patients in various degrees. Intrapancreatic bile duct stenosis is considered to be influenced by extrinsic compression rather than bile duct wall thickness. However, the presence of cases that presented with bile duct wall thickness without extrinsic compression suggest that intrapancreatic bile duct stenosis could be caused by sclerosing cholangitis alone.
