Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Sub millimeter CT scan has the advantages of extremely high speed, reducing the motion artifacts and high resolution; it can be used to observe the arterioles with the diameter less than 1 mm.
OBJECTIVE: To observe the blood supplying arterioles of extrahepatic bile duct by sub millimeter CT.
METHODS: Fifty-four cases that need to perform the sub-millimeter CT angiography on the abdomen due to various reasons were selected, a continuous thin source image observation was used combined with multi-planar reconstruction, maximum intensity projection and volume rendering to observed the arteriolar origin, count and distribution dominance, as well as the bore of the common bile duct.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: There were 54 images and one common bile duct in each image and there was no special running. The superior pancreaticoduodenal artery could be observed in 51 cases, accompanied by the inferior segment of common bile duct; in 7 cases, the superior and the inferior pancreaticoduodenal artery anastomosed to be artery arch, also accompanying inferior segment of common bile duct; in the superior blood supplying arterioles, 11 cases were cystic artery proximal segment, 14 patients from the right hepatic artery, 2 patients from the hepatic artery, 1 patient from the common hepatic artery and 1 patient from left hepatic artery. Thirty-nine cases of lower segment of bile duct blood supplying arterioles were in advantage, 10 cases of upper segment of bile duct blood supplying arterioles were in advantage and the remaining 5 cases were in balance. The inside diameter of the common bile duct of the 54 cases were 4-14 (11.0±5.8) mm. The inferior common bile duct supplying arteries are fragile, so the blind separation and the ligation of small blood vessels are not favorable during the operation. For cholelithiasis and liver and pancreatic malignant and benign space-occupying lesions in elderly patients, preoperative abdominal CT angiography examination is necessary.