ERCP (Diagnostic) in India starts from $1500. The total cost of the treatment depends on the diagnosis and facilities opted by the patient.
ERCP procedure or Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangio-Pancreatography is an assessment as well as a procedure meant for rectifying problems in bile and pancreatic ducts. This is considered to be a very critical and life saving procedure involving an endoscope. Examination of critical areas needs to be done and rectification has to be done immediately with planned procedural steps.
Who needs an ERCP?
An ERCP procedure is recommended in order to diagnose the status of bile ducts and the pancreas and if there are problems discovered during diagnosis then they are treated as well. The procedure is appropriate in order to do evaluation of symptoms that are suggestive of certain diseases prevalent in these organs. It is also used as a method of reconfirmation of abnormal results generated from ultrasound, CT scan or imaging tests and blood tests. If CT scan reveals abnormal mass or stones in these organs then ERCP is recommended.
The procedure can even be performed before and after a gall bladder surgery to help in the conducted operation’s performance in overall. If there are stones or tumours of both cancerous and non cancerous nature then they can be removed with the help of ERCP procedure from bile ducts and pancreas. If there have been any complications noted during gall bladder surgery then those can also be diagnosed with the help of this. Patients having any pancreatic disease or suspected disorder for them the ERCP method can suggest the requirement of surgery and the type of surgery that may be best for the treatment. In some cases pancreatic stones can be addressed and removed with the help of ERCP procedure.
Causes of ERCP
Causes of the problems are mainly because of narrowing or blockage of the bile ducts and pancreatic duct. Gall stones are formed and they get stuck to the common bile duct thus requiring surgical interventions. Gall stones are usually formed of cholesterol in maximum cases while for 20% cases it is a result of calcium and pigments like bilirubin giving rise to stones. Other causes can be imbalance of diet and irregular lifestyle giving rise to infection. Alcohol drinking and fatty food consumption results in acute and chronic pancreatitis.
Symptoms of ERCP
The way to know that you may be a patient requiring ERCP is:
- Abdominal cramps
- Fever and Nausea
- Vomiting tendency with occasional bleeding
- Irritation felt in the stomach
- General fatigue experienced
What is ERCP?
The procedure of ERCP enables the doctor or the surgeon to precisely examine the bile ducts and the pancreatic duct. In this procedure the endoscope which is a lighted tube and can be bent as well has a thickness of the index finger almost and it is inserted via the mouth of the patient and then it is made to access the stomach and the small intestine’s first part that is the duodenum. A small plastic tube named cannula is passed via the endoscope into the opening which is very small in size in the duodenum. The opening is called the ampulla. A contrasting substance or a dye is then injected and then X rays are carried out to start the study and find the status of the liver, pancreas and the ducts.