Ultrasound-Guided Percutaneous Transhepatic Gallbladder Drainage Improves the Prognosis of Patients with Severe Acute Cholecystitis

The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical efficacy of ultrasound-guided percutaneous transhepatic gallbladder drainage (PTGD) for the treatment of severe acute cholecystitis (AC). The data of 40 patients diagnosed with severe AC at our hospital between August 2020 and June 2021 were retrieved and classified into a PTGD group, open cholecystostomy (OC) group, laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) group, and conventional conservative treatment (CT) group. Before treatment and on days 1, 3, 5, and 7 after treatment, their serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin (TBIL), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), white blood cell count (WBC), IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, and cancer antigen 19–9 (CA19-9) were measured. Additionally, clinical manifestations such as body temperature and pain score were monitored before treatment and at 24, 48, and 72 hours after treatment. The recovery time and complications/adverse reactions were statistically analyzed, and the Kaplan–Meier survival curve was plotted. After treatment, compared with the other three groups, the PTGD group had a significant reduction in serum indicators, including WBC and inflammatory factors, recovery time, pain score, and complications, and benefitted from better treatment efficacy and higher survival rate. Thus, ultrasound-guided PTGD was found to be more effective in treating severe AC patients and was associated with improved patient prognoses.