Confocal laser endomicroscopy distinguishing benign and malignant gallbladder polyps during choledochoscopic gallbladder-preserving polypectomy: A case report

BACKGROUND: In the last decade, confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE) has emerged as a new endoscopic imaging modality for real-time in vivo histological examination at the microscopic level. CLE has been shown to be useful for distinguishing benign and malignant lesions and has been widely used in many digestive diseases. In our study, we used CLE for the first time to examine the morphology of cholesterol polyps as well as the different parts of normal gallbladder mucosa. CASE SUMMARY: A 57-year-old woman was diagnosed by ultrasound with a polyp of 21 mm in the gallbladder wall. She consented to polyp removal by laparoscopic choledo-choscopy. During laparoscopic cholecystectomy combined with choledochoscopic polyp resection, CLE was used to observe the morphology of the polyp surface cells. The appearance of the mucosa and microvessels in various parts of the gallbladder were also observed under CLE. Through comparison between postoperative pathology and intraoperative CLE diagnosis, the reliability of intraoperative CLE diagnosis was confirmed. CLE is a reliable method to examine living cell pathology during cholecystectomy. Based on our practice, CLE should be prioritized in the diagnosis of gallbladder polyps. CONCLUSION: Compared with traditional histological examination, CLE has several advantages. We believe that CLE has great potential in this field.