PTC

Meaning of PTC: PTC uses a needle placed through the liver to inject contrast and x-ray the bile ducts, most often to locate a blockage.

Definition of PTC

PTC is an abbreviation for a procedure in which a thin needle is passed through the skin and directly into the liver to reach one of the bile ducts, the small channels that carry bile from the liver toward the intestine. A contrast agent is then injected through the needle, and x-ray images are taken as the contrast moves through the bile ducts, allowing a blockage or narrowing to be identified.

PTC is generally used when a blockage in the bile ducts is suspected but cannot be adequately evaluated or reached using a procedure performed through the digestive tract, and it can also serve a treatment role, allowing a drainage tube to be placed to relieve a blockage found during the same procedure.

Because PTC involves passing a needle directly through the liver, it is generally reserved for situations where less invasive imaging or endoscopic approaches to the bile ducts have not been possible or successful.