Table 1 Patients’ baseline characteristics

number of patients

810

 - median age in years (range)

68(27-97)

 - male

456

number of cholangitis episodes

981

underlying cause of cholangitis episodes

malignant genesis:

509 (51,9 %)

 - cholangiocarcinoma

206 (21,0 %)

 - pancreas cancer

162 (16,5 %)

 - hepatocellular carcinoma

7 (0,7 %)

 - liver metastases with intrahepatic biliary obstruction:

 o colorectal cancer

50 (5,1 %)

 o gastric cancer

30 (3,1 %)

 o gallbladder cancer

28 (2,9 %)

 o other malignant tumors (breast cancer, oesophagus cancer…)

26 (2,7 %)

benign genesis:

391 (39,9 %)

 - stricture of the biliodigestive anastomosis

32 (3,3 %)

 - chronic pancreatitis with extrahepatic biliary obstruction

17 (1,7 %)

 - bile duct stricture after cholecystectomy

36 (3,7 %)

 - liver cyst with intrahepatic biliary stricture

1 (0,1 %)

 - adenoma of the papilla vateri

6 (0,6 %)

 - choledocholithiasis

271 (27,6 %)

 - primary sclerosing cholangitis

21 (2,1 %)

 - trauma associated strictures

6 (0,6 %)

 - secondary sclerosing cholangitis

1 (0,1 %)

idiopathic biliary stricture:

81 (8,3 %)