Roentgen Features of Congenital Cystic Dilatation of the Common Bile Duct: A Report of Two Cases

Differences in the pattern and. course of the biliary ducts, their size and shape, and the site of entrance of the common bile duct into the duodenum are so frequently encountered and so numerous that they are usually considered normal variations. The major anomalies of the biliary system are duplication of the gallbladder and the so-called choledochal cyst. In this paper 2 patients are presented with choledochal cysts which were demonstrated preoperatively by oral cholecystography with iopanoic acid.2 Choledochal cyst was first described by Vater in 1723. In a comprehensive review Alonso-Lej (1) collected 405 cases of which only 3 were preoperatively diagnosed by means of oral cholecystography (4, 6, 8). Most cases were discovered before the fourth decade ; the average age was twenty-five years. The condition occurs approximately four times more commonly in females than in males. We prefer the designation “cystic dilatation of the common bile duct” which is a more descriptive term than the commonly used ...