Impact of Pringle Maneuver on Postoperative Gallbladder Diseases After Hepatectomy

Recruiting now

Conditions studied: Gallbladder Diseases, Cholelithiasis

In brief

The liver is an organ with a rich blood supply. During liver surgery (hepatectomy), surgeons often temporarily clamp the blood vessels supplying the liver to maintain a clear surgical field and reduce bleeding. This common technique is known as the Pringle maneuver. However, this maneuver also temporarily cuts off the blood supply to the gallbladder. Currently, doctors debate whether to routinely remove a healthy gallbladder during liver surgery to prevent future gallbladder problems, or to preserve it. The primary purpose of this multicenter retrospective cohort study is to evaluate whether using the Pringle maneuver during liver surgery increases the risk of patients developing gallbladder diseases (such as gallstones or inflammation) later on. Researchers will review the past medical records of patients who underwent liver surgery with their gallbladder preserved between January 2012 and January 2022. By comparing patients who had the Pringle maneuver with those who did not, the study aims to provide reliable clinical evidence to help surgeons make better decisions about whether to preserve or remove the gallbladder during liver surgery.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT07452848

Run by

West China Hospital

People needed

2000

Starts

2026-03-01

Expected to finish

2026-08-01

Last updated by the study team

2026-03-05

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 85. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Aged 18 to 85 years.
• Definitive diagnosis of hepatic solid lesions confirmed by imaging (such as CT, MRI, or ultrasound) and/or pathology.
• Underwent elective hepatectomy with gallbladder preservation.
• Preoperative liver function evaluated as Child-Pugh class A or B.
• Preoperative American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status classification of I, II, or III.

You may not qualify if…

• Preoperative evaluation indicating pre-existing biliary tract diseases (e.g., cholelithiasis, biliary inflammation, neoplastic lesions).
• History of previous upper abdominal surgery.
• Application of non-hepatic inflow occlusion methods during surgery (e.g., hemihepatic vascular occlusion, selective segmental vascular occlusion).
• Personal history of long-term use of hormone replacement therapy, somatostatin and its analogues, or oral contraceptives.
• Loss to follow-up or missing critical data postoperatively.

Where it is running

• The First Affiliated Hospital of University of Science and Technology of China — Hefei, Anhui, China (enrolling)
• Xinqiao Hospital of Army Medical Universit — Chongqing, Chongqing Municipality, China (enrolling)
• Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center — Guangzhou, Guangdong, China (enrolling)
• Zhujiang Hospital of Southern Medical University — Guangzhou, Guangdong, China (enrolling)
• The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University — Harbin, Heilongjiang, China (enrolling)
• Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology — Wuhan, Hubei, China (enrolling)
• Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital — Nanjing, Jiangsu, China (enrolling)
• Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital — Tianjin, Tianjin Municipality, China (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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