Intrahepatic bile duct stones refer to primary bile duct stones above the bifurcation of the bile duct, the vast majority of which are pigmented stones with calcium bilirubinate as the main component. Although intrahepatic bile duct stones are part of primary bile duct stones, they have their own characteristics. If they coexist with extrahepatic bile duct stones, they often have similar clinical manifestations to extrahepatic bile duct stones. Due to their deep hiding in the liver tissue, their branches and anatomical structures are complex, the location, number, and size of the stones are not fixed, diagnosis and treatment are much more difficult than simple extrahepatic bile duct stones, and they are still difficult to handle and have unsatisfactory efficacy in the hepatobiliary system to this day.
The incidence of intrahepatic bile duct stones in foreign countries is lower, a group2700 cases of bile duct surgery only accounted for1.3％, and most of them are secondary to common bile duct stones in the gallbladder that have migrated upwards and formed in the intrahepatic bile ducts. However, in China, the incidence of intrahepatic bile duct stones is relatively high, especially in Fujian, Jiangxi, and Shandong provinces in China, the incidence of intrahepatic bile duct stones can account for30 έως40.%. The high incidence may be related to biliary tract infections caused by Ascaris, and may also be related to low protein and low fat diets in the diet. Intrahepatic bile duct stones can be widely distributed in the branches of the bile ducts in both lobes, or can be localized to one place, generally most common in the left lobe or right posterior lobe, which may be related to the large curvature of the bile ducts in these areas and poor bile drainage. A group from Zhongshan Hospital92Παράδειγμα, οι calculi των αριστερών χοληδοκυττάρων αποτελούν31.3％ Οι περισσότεροι ασθενείς με calculi των χοληδοκυττάρων εντός του ήπατος στη Κίνα είναι πρωτογενείς calculi των χολόχουνας, η φύση τους είναι κυρίως οι calculi χολερόληπτου ασβεστίου. Οι calculi των χοληδοκυττάρων εντός του ήπατος συνήθως συνοδεύονται από calculi των εξωχολόχουνας.
