A Rare Case of Portal Vein Thrombosis Following a Successful Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

The function of the portal vein is to drain the blood mainly from the gastrointestinal tract to the liver and its thrombosis is an extremely unexpected outcome of an uncomplicated laparoscopic cholecystectomy. It is believed to be a rarely reported case to date in non-cirrhotic patients. A female patient, aged 43 years, presented to the surgical outpatient department with unexplained severe abdominal pain soon after laparoscopic cholecystectomy. A relative workup was done and radiological evidence revealed the thrombosis in the distal part of the portal vein at its bifurcation which completely occluded the left branch of the vein. Although rare, portal vein thrombosis should be concluded in the differentials for unexplained causes of abdominal pain in the postoperative period of laparoscopic cholecystectomy.