The Rationale of Sub-Hepatic Drainage on a Specialist Biliary Unit: a Review of 6140 Elective and Urgent Laparoscopic Cholecystectomies and Bile Duct Explorations.

Drains are used to reduce abdominal collections after procedures where such risk exists. Using abdominal drains after cholecystectomy has been controversial since the open surgery era. Universally accepted indications and agreement exist that routine drainage is unnecessary but the role of selective drainage remains undetermined. This study evaluates the indications and benefits of sub-hepatic drainage in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) and bile duct exploration (BDE) in a specialist unit with a large biliary emergency workload. Prospectively collected data from 6,140 LCs with a 46.6