Operative injuries to the bile ducts.  Report on 12 cases. 
We have reported on a series of 12 operative injuries to the bile ducts.  We estimate the frequency of these accidents at 0.2% during cholecystectomy and 0.4% after gastroduodenectomy.  We stress the importance of systematic cholangiography during the operation to prevent unrecognized lesions.  Immediate repair of these lesions by an end-to-end anastomosis appears to be the best technical method.  When faced with a high mortality rate, often due to non-recognition of a lesion, we stress the importance of prevention to limit the risk of such accidents occurring and non-recognition of those that do occur.