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Laparoscopic surgery is performed with small holes, which greatly reduces the time and pain of recovery in the hospital and at home, and is indicated for many surgeries, such as bariatric surgery or removal of the gallbladder and appendix, for example.
Laparoscopy can be exploratory surgery when it serves as a diagnostic test or biopsy or is a surgical technique to treat some disease, such as removing a tumor from an organ.
Furthermore, almost all individuals can perform laparoscopic surgery on the doctor's recommendation, however, in some cases, already in the operating room and even during laparoscopic surgery, the surgeon may need to perform an open surgery to treatment is successful, which implies making a larger cut and slower recovery.
Laparoscopic surgery
Most common laparoscopy surgeries
Some of the surgeries that can be performed laparoscopically can be:
- Bariatric surgery;
- Removal of inflamed organs such as gallbladder, spleen or appendix;
- Treatment of hernias of the abdomen;
- Removal of tumors, such as from the rectum or colon polyps;
- Gynecologic surgery, such as hysterectomy.
Also, laparoscopy can often be used to determine the reason for pelvic pain or infertility and is an excellent way to both diagnose and treat endometriosis, for example.
How Laparoscopic Surgery Works
Depending on the purpose of the surgery, the doctor will make 3 to 6 holes in the region, through which a microcamera with a light source will enter to observe the interior of the organism and the instruments necessary to cut and remove the organ or some other affected part, leaving very small scars about 1.5 cm.
Small holes from laparoscopy
The doctor will be able to observe the internal area through a small camera that enters the body and will generate the image on the computer, a technique known as videolaparoscopy. However, this surgery requires the use of general anesthesia and therefore it is usually necessary to stay in the hospital for at least one day.
The patient's recovery is much faster than a conventional surgery, in which a large cut is necessary and, therefore, the chances of complications are lower and the risk of pain and infection is lower.
