The Status of SEMS Versus Plastic Stents for Benign Biliary Strictures.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Benign biliary strictures can be treated with plastic stents and self-expandable metal stents (SEMS). This review article delineates the latest scientific evidence for their usage. RECENT FINDINGS: Despite evolving literature on both type of stents as treatment modalities of benign biliary strictures, which encompass mainly anastomotic strictures and strictures related to chronic pancreatitis, no final conclusions can be drawn regarding the superiority of a particular stent. SEMS tend to have higher stricture resolution rates and fewer procedural requirements which are partly offset by higher stent migration and stricture recurrence rates compared with plastic stents. Additional studies focusing on new SEMS types with anti-migration features as well as cost-effectiveness calculations are necessary for clinical decision-making when treating patients with benign biliary strictures.