Cholecystitis: Symptoms and Treatments

7. Treatment: ERCP

If you have gallstones in the common bile duct, they need to be removed. A procedure known as endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) can remove the stones. The doctor uses a flexible telescope that goes down your mouth into the stomach to widen the area where the ducts empty into the small intestine. A small cut will widen the opening, and the gallstones can then be extracted and passed back through the flexible telescope. You may still need to have your gallbladder removed, too, since this is where the gallstones originate and can recur. In rare cases, an ERCP may not be performed, and another operation will be required.