ABSTRACT
On a mechanistic basis, cholestasis usually is divided into “extrahepatic” and “intrahepatic” forms. The rst refers to obstruction of large bile ducts outside the liver, e.g., due to gallstones, while the causes of intrahepatic cholestasis lie within the liver. Extrahepatic mechanical cholestasis is not a rare abnormality. It occurs in about 10% of patients suffering from cholelithiasis and in the majority of neoplasms affecting the pancreas and the common bile duct.1
