The Effectiveness of Postoperative Early Administration of Inchinkoto for Biliary Atresia Patients

Abstract

The aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness of postoperative early administration of Inchinkoto (ICKT) for patients with biliary atresia (BA) on bile drainage and survive rate of the native liver (SRNL) in jaundice-free patients. Methods : Subjects comprised of 44 patients who underwent hepatic portoenterostomy for BA between May 1993 and December 2010 at our institution. The subjects were divided into two groups. Group A patients (n=24) received no ICKT. Group B patients (n=20) received ICKT within two weeks after hepatic portoenterostomy (early administration). Medical records were retrospectively reviewed with regard to the serum total bilirubin level (T.bil), the jaundice-free ratio (JFR) and the survival rate of the native liver (SRNL) in the jaundice-free patients. Results : A significant difference was seen in T.bil (mg/dl) at one/three months after hepatic portoenterostomy (Group A; 6.5 ± 3.1/7.2 ± 5.1 , versus Group B; 4.9 ± 3.2/3.6 ± 4.4, p<0.01) and JFR (Group A; 29.2％ versus Group B; 80.0％ , p<0.05). SRNL tended to high in Group B (50.0％) compared to Group A (18.2％). Conclusions : The postoperative early administration of ICKT for BA patients may facilitate bile flow and improve JFR and SRNL.