Minimally Invasive Surgery

Understanding Laparoscopic Surgery

laparoscopy/minimally invasive surgery is a low-risk, minimally invasive procedure that is conducted by surgeons to examine the organs inside the abdomen. The procedure employs a long, thin tube with a high-intensity light and a high-resolution camera at the front called a laparoscope. It allows the surgeon to see inside the patient’s body in real-time, without open surgery and allows to take biopsy samples.

Earlier, this procedure was performed for gynecologic and gall bladder surgery. Although, in the last decade it has extended into intestinal surgery. Dr. Rengan and his team now use it increasingly for hernia surgery too. In traditional surgery, the surgeon employs one incision to enter the abdomen, while laparoscopic surgery utilizes several 0.5–1cm incisions.

Why is a Laparoscopy surgery conducted?

Diagnostic laparoscopy is carried out to inspect organs including the appendix, gallbladder, liver, pancreas, colon, spleen, stomach, pelvic or reproductive organs. Conducting laparoscopy allows the doctor to detect an abdominal mass or tumor, fluid in the abdominal cavity, liver disease, the effectiveness of certain treatments, and the extent to which particular cancer has progressed.

Laparoscopic surgery is similar to open surgery except that all the steps are done through small incisions and everything is viewed through a camera.

Is Laparoscopy safe?

Laparoscopic surgery can be considered as reliable as traditional open surgery. At the beginning of the operation, the laparoscope is inserted through a small opening near the belly button also called the umbilicus. Initially, it aids the surgeon to inspect the abdomen and ascertain whether the surgery can be conducted without any harm to the patient. If the amount of inflammation is high or the surgeon witnesses other factors that may obstruct a clear view of the structures, the surgeon will have to make an even larger incision to carry out the operation securely.

Any form of surgery usually has certain risks like complications associated with anesthesia and bleeding or infections. The risk of any procedure must be ascertained in part by the nature of the specific operation. A patient’s general health and any additional medical conditions are also major factors that can affect the risk of any operation. Prior to the surgery, one must discuss the exposure of risks of this procedure as per his/her health condition with the surgeon. Almost all surgeries in the modern era are safe and Dr. Rengan and his team make the utmost efforts to make sure that your surgery is safe and uneventful.

Advantages of Laparoscopy for the patient:

As compared to getting a traditional open surgery, laparoscopy has added advantages for the patient that include the following:

The patient will have relatively smaller scars.

• The patient will be discharged earlier from the hospital.
• He/she will feel lesser pain and the scars heal would heal faster.
• He/she can resume the routine life more quickly.
• There will be less internal scarring.

Dr. Rengan is one of the best laparoscopic surgeons in Chennai who has been practicing laparoscopy for the last 20 years. It is important that you choose an experienced laparoscopic surgeon for your surgery. Common laparoscopic surgeries performed by Dr. Rengan include surgeries for gallstones, appendicitis, hernias, and other common abdominal conditions.