Objective  To investigate the application of three-dimensional visualization technology in preoperative assessment of hilar cholangiocarcinoma.

  Methods  Thirty-eight patients with hilar cholangiocarcinoma who underwent surgery from March 2014 to April 2016 were enrolled in the retrospective study. Among the cases, an observational group of 18 patients had preoperative three-dimensional visualization surgical planning, while a control group of 20 patients did not have the visualization surgical plan. The preoperative diagnostic results were analyzed with the actual intraoperative findings. Related surgicall indicators between the two groups were compared.

  Results  No significant difference in the accuracy rates of longitudinal and vertical infiltration of cholangiocarcinoma between was observed the observational group and control group. While the vascular and ductal branching pattern of all patients are consistent with intraoperative findings, the coincidence rate was higher in the observational group than that in the control group (100% vs. 70%, P < 0.05). The estimated liver volumes were also exactly consistent with the actual liver volume (r=0.986, P < 0.001). In comparison with the control group, the average intraoperative blood loss and operative time of the observational group were significantly lower. However, the potential curative resection between the two groups exhibited no significant difference.

  Conclusion  Three-dimensional visualization technology can accurately complete the preoperative evaluation of hilarcholangiocarcinoma.