Ischemic cholangiopathy

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Ischemic cholangiopathy is damage to one or more bile ducts caused by inadequate blood flow.
(See also Overview of Blood Vessel Disorders of the Liver.)
Bile ducts (such as the hepatic ducts and the common bile duct), unlike the liver, are supplied with blood from only one major blood vessel, the hepatic artery. Thus, disruption of blood flow through the hepatic artery can prevent the bile ducts from obtaining enough oxygen. Consequently, the cells lining the ducts are damaged or die—a disorder called ischemic cholangiopathy. Blood flow can be disrupted when

A liver transplant is rejected.
Blood vessels are injured during liver transplantation surgery or removal of the gallbladder by laparoscopy.
Blood vessels are injured by radiation therapy.
People have a disorder that makes blood more likely to clot (blood clotting disorder).
A procedure that is done to block blood flow to a tumor in the liver (called chemoembolization) also blocks blood flow to healthy tissue.

Ischemic cholangiopathy most commonly occurs in people who have had a liver transplant.