Gallbladder Infundibulum as a Guide for Ductal Identification.

Introduction: Bile duct injury (BDI) is a catastrophic complication of cholecystectomy, and misidentification of the cystic anatomy is considered to be the main cause. Although several techniques have been developed to prevent BDI, such as the "critical view of safety", the infundibular technique, the rates remain higher during laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) than during open surgery. Strategy for ductal identification during laparoscopic cholecystectomy can help to prevent laparoscopic bile duct injury. Methods: A prospective study of 196 patients who will undergo LC during the study period of one year at Nepal Mediciti Hospital will be conducted. The gallbladder infundibulum will be classified by its position located on an imaginary clock with the gallbladder neck as the center point of the dial, 3 o'clock position as cranial, 6 o'clock as dorsal, 9 o'clock as caudal, and 12 o'clock as ventral, as well as the axial position. Patient demographics, pathologic variables and infundibulum classification will be evaluated. Detailed analysis of ductal identification based on gallbladder infundibulum position will be performed in this study. All infundibulum positions will be recorded during intraoperative laparoscopic procedure.