Objective To investigate the alternatives of different endoscopic drainages for acute cholangitis of severe type (ACST) in elderly patients with chronic respiratory disease. Methods The clinical data of 74 cases of ACST in elderly patients with chronic respiratory disease undergoing 3 kinds of drainages, endoscopic retrograde double biliary stent drainage (D-ERBD), endoscopic retrograde single biliary stent drainage (S-ERBD), or endoscopic nasobiliary drainage (ENBD) in the First Hospital of Lanzhou University from October 2005 to October 2015 were collected to analyze prospectively. Results Compared with preoperative, the white blood cell (WBC), direct bilirubin (DBIL), temperature, and abdominal pain NRS evaluation in 48 h after operation in 3 groups all decreased, the difference was statistically significant (P＜0.05). Compared among 3 groups, there were no significant difference among the incidences of postoperative hyperamylasemia, pancreatitis and gastrointestinal hemorrhage (P＞0.05). The group of ENBD was more likely to develop pulmonary infection and achieve a secondary treatment than other 2 groups (P＜0.05). Totally 5 patients died in 3 groups, with a mortality of 6.76%, but the mortality rates were similar among the 3 groups (P＞0.05). The deaths were predominantly caused by multiple organ failure (MOF), 4 cases of which were caused by respiratory failure related to respiratory infection. Conclusion The alternative of endoscopic retrograde double biliary stent drainage (D-ERBD) can not only alleviate cholangitis rapidly, but it can reduce the incidence of aspiration pneumonia.