Preface

As a physician working in the Department of Gastroenterology, I am very pleased to cooperate with IntechOpen to launch a book about the digestive system in January 2019. Through persistent efforts, a total of 9 chapters, which are authored by worldwide experts in the field of liver diseases, are included in this book entitled as "*Digestive System - Recent Advances*". The book is divided into 3 major sections: gastrointestinal duct, liver, and biliary system. In more detail, the book covers peptic ulcers, mid-gastrointestinal bleeding, gastrointestinal manifestations of IgA vasculitis, biomechanics of intestinal contractions, gallbladder carcinoma, ERCP for cholecysto-choledocholithiasis, and cystic artery variations and associated vascular complications in laparoscopic cholecystectomy and the evaluation of serum sodium change after terlipressin in cirrhosis. The knowledge presented in the book should be valuable for family physicians, internists, gastroenterologists, and hepatologists who are interested in digestive diseases to guide the clinical practice and management. This book should be also useful for patients and their relatives to better understand the digestive system.

I am deeply indebted to the assistance from IntechOpen staff, including Andrea Koric (Commissioning Editor) and Lada Bozic (Author Service Manager). Also, I greatly appreciate the support from all chapter authors. Finally, I wish to dedicate this book to my wife Jun Liu.

> **Dr. Xingshun Qi** Department of Gastroenterology, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, China

I am extremely pleased to work with IntechOpen to launch this book on the digestive system, with the section on the biliary system under my supervision. The chapters cover the variations, complications, and latest modifications in various topics of the biliary system. Some of the topics such as gallbladder carcinoma, ERCP for cholecysto-choledocholithiasis, and cystic artery variations and associated vascular complications in laparoscopic cholecystectomy, have been described keeping in mind the current practice and the recent advances in the field. The knowledge presented in this book should be valuable for young surgeons as a guide for the clinical practice and management.

As an editor I have tried to ensure that the descriptions and techniques illustrated are representative of contemporary practice while keeping the information current and simple.

**II**

**Chapter 7 103**

**Chapter 8 113**

**Chapter 9 123**

Gall Bladder Carcinoma: Clinical Presentations and Different Modalities of

Intraoperative ERCP for Management of Gallbladder and Common Bile

Cystic Artery Variations and Associated Vascular Complications in

*by Pankaj Prasoon, Tomohiro Katada, Kohei Miura, Yuki Hirose, Jun Sakata* 

*by Wala Ben Kridis, Nabil Toumi, Jamel Daoud, Afef Khanfir and Mounir Frikha*

Treatment

Duct Stones

*by Ahmed Abdelraouf Elgeidie*

Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

*and Toshifumi Wakai*

I would like to thank God Almighty for giving me the vision and opportunity to be part of this book. I deeply appreciate the IntechOpen staff, including Andrea Koric (Commissioning Editor) and Lada Bozic (Author Service Manager) for their continuous support. I extend my thanks to all the authors for their time and effort. My sincere gratitude to Dr. Santhosh John Abraham (Professor and HOD Gen Surgery, Past President – Associations of Surgeons of India, Dr. Vimal Iype (Head of Vascular Surgery), my colleagues Dr. Arunesh Dubey, Dr.Nidhin, and Dr. Sooraj Sankar for their timeless help and support. Finally I would like to thank my parents, and my wife for the enormous support throughout the years.

> **Dr. Sam Koruth** Lourdes Hopital, Kerala, India

> > Section 1

Gastrointestinal Duct

1

Section 1
