Background Endoscopic papillary large-balloon dilation (EPLBD) allows for the complete removal of large common bile duct (CBD) stones without fragmentation; however, a significant proportion of very large stones and stones floating above a tapering CBD require lithotripsy. Mechanical lithotripsy and cholangioscopy-guided laser lithotripsy are both effective for stone fragmentation. This study aimed to directly compare, for the first time, the efficacy of these two techniques in terms of stone clearance rate, procedure duration, patient radiation exposure, and safety. Methods 32 patients with very large CBD stones or with stones floating above a tapering CBD, and in whom extraction after standard sphincterotomy and/or EPLBD had failed, were randomly assigned to mechanical lithotripsy or cholangioscopy-guided laser lithotripsy at two tertiary referral centers. Crossover was allowed as a rescue treatment if the assigned technique failed. Results Patients’ demographic data were not different between the two groups. Mechanical lithotripsy had a significantly lower stone clearance rate in the first session compared with laser lithotripsy (63% vs. 100%; P < 0.01). Laser lithotripsy rescued 60% of patients with failed mechanical lithotripsy by achieving complete stone clearance within the same session. Radiation exposure of patients was significantly higher in the mechanical lithotripsy group than in the laser lithotripsy group (40 745 vs. 20 989 mGycm2; P  = 0.04). Adverse events (13% vs. 6%; P  = 0.76) and length of hospital stay (1 vs. 1 day; P  = 0.27) were not different. Conclusions Although mechanical lithotripsy is the standard of care for a very large CBD stone after failed EPLBD, where available, cholangioscopy-guided laser lithotripsy is considered the better option for the treatment of this entity as it provides a higher success rate and lower radiation exposure.

Background. Data in the literature has shown poor sleep quality to be frequently observed in hospitalized patients and known to be associated with poor treatment outcome. Many factors may impact poor sleep quality, and there is currently limited available data. We aim to determine the prevalence of poor sleep quality and associated factors in patients admitted to internal medicine wards as well as the change of sleep quality over time after admission. Methods. An analytic observational study was conducted at the internal medicine wards at the King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand. Patients were personally interviewed to evaluate the history of sleep quality at home, sleep quality after the first and the third days of admission, and potential associated factors. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and screening questionnaires for the common diseases associated with poor sleep quality were also utilized. The logistic regression analysis was used to determine the independent factors which led to poor sleep quality. Results. Data were collected from 96 patients during the period of June 2015 to February 2016. The mean age of the patients was 50.8±16.7 years, and 51% were male. Infectious disease was the most common principal diagnosis accounted for 29.2%. The results show high prevalence of poor sleep quality after the first night of admission compared to baseline sleep quality at home (50% vs. 18.8%; p<0.001). After 3 days of admission, the prevalence of poor sleep quality was reduced to the level close to baseline sleep quality at home (28.1% vs. 18.8%; p=0.13). Multivariate analysis demonstrated that light exposure and pain were the main independent factors for poor sleep quality on the first day (odds ratio 6.68; 95% CI 2.25-19.84) and on the third day (odds ratio 3.47; 95% CI 1.24-9.71), respectively. Conclusions. This is the first study conducted on the sleep quality of hospitalized patients that included the follow-up period during hospital admission. Our study demonstrated high prevalence of poor sleep quality in hospitalized patients on the first day. Interestingly, the sleep quality was partly improved during hospitalization. Light exposure and pain were demonstrated to be the factors associated with poor sleep quality.