LAPAROSCOPIC SURGERY LINKS
This year, more than 1 million people in the United States
will learn they have gallstones. They will join the estimated 20
million Americans who have previously been diagnosed with this
condition. Most people with gallstones are asymptomatic,
typically remain symptom free for years, and require no
treatment.
However, each year more than 700,000 Americans develop
symptomatic stones, requiring some form of intervention. While
there are alternative nonsurgical forms of treatment, these
remain palliative rather than curative.
Cholecystectomy--the surgical removal of the
gallbladder--is the standard method for treating symptomatic
gallstones and gallbladder disease. Until the end of the 1980s,
this surgery was done as an "open" procedure, requiring a
six-inch incision, a three-to four-day hospital stay, followed
by a three-to six-week convalescence.
In 1989, the world of gallbladder surgery underwent a
revolution with the introduction of laparoscopic
cholecystectomy, or fiber optic surgery performed through the
abdominal cavity wall. Developed in the United States by Dr.
Eddie Joe Reddick, the procedure was enthusiastically embraced
by both the surgical community and the public, because it
resulted in less postoperative pain, shorter hospital stays, and
more rapid return to normal activity when compared to the open
procedure.
Currently, 90 percent of cholecystectomies are done
laparoscopically, and the procedure is the most common one
performed in a general surgery practice. Yet, the benefits of
the procedure have been attained against the backdrop of an
alarmingly increased number of iatrogenic injuries, injuries
caused by the surgeon. While many errors can
arise during laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the most devastating
complication is injury to the Bile Duct.
Click
HERE
to read Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy...When Things Go
Wrong ©
Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Procedure
Bile Duct
Injury and Risk of Death
Bile Duct Injury
Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Procedure
Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Procedure
Laparoscopic Procedure Photos
WebSurg Articles on Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy |