Secondary sclerosing cholangitis after long-term treatment in an intensive care unit: clinical presentation, endoscopic findings, treatment, and follow-up.

Background and study aims We present ten patients who developed secondary sclerosing cholangitis following long-term treatment in an intensive care unit (ICU) between 1999 and 2004. Patients and methods Ten consecutive patients who had no evidence suggestive of pre-existing hepatobiliary disease were admitted to an ICU because of trauma (n = 5), intracerebral hemorrhage (n = 3), or nonabdominal postsurgical complications (n = 2). All the patients had required treatment with long-term ventilation, catecholamines, total parenteral nutrition, and several antimicrobial agents. Results Cholestasis was first noted within 11 days after the initial insult. Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatogr…