Cholangiography (contrast study of the bile ducts)

Cholangiography is an X-ray examination of the bile ducts, the channels that carry bile from the liver to the intestine. An iodinated contrast agent is injected into these ducts and images are taken as it flows through. Most often, it is carried out through a drain already in place after bile duct surgery (T-tube): the contrast is injected directly into the drain, without a needle. It checks that bile flows properly into the intestine and that no stone remains, before the drain is removed. Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography is a different, specialised procedure: the radiologist punctures the bile ducts through the skin and the liver. It is reserved for specific situations; the arrangements (local anaesthesia, blood tests, monitoring) are explained to you by the doctor.