Laparoscopy has finally joined urology as a subspecialty, after being ignored by urologists for decades. Many incisional procedures can now be effectively replaced by a skilled laparoscopic urologist. This area of urologic surgery is quickly evolving, with only the urologist’s imagination limiting its potential. Our urologic practice approaches will evolve considerably in the future years.
Laparoscopy will take the place of the need to cause harm to healing. Laparoscopy surgery combines the benefits of endoscopic surgery (which is less invasive) with the benefits of open surgery, which is used to remove and reconstruct various organs. As a result, the advantages of early postoperative recovery, shorter hospital stays, and quicker recovery are transferred. The single most important development in the area of urology since ESWL has been the emergence of laparoscopic urologic surgery.
Laparoscopic urologic procedures can be performed either transperitoneally or retroperitoneal. The anterior abdominal wall musculature is penetrated by anterior ports in the transperitoneal approach, and the line of Toldt is incised to access the kidneys. Laparoscopic access into the kidney retroperitoneally is by the superior or inferior lumbar triangle. Because these organs are fundamentally positioned in the retroperitoneum, urologic surgery is largely retroperitoneal and extraperitoneal. With the advent of laparoscopic surgery, however, urologists once again found themselves needing to enter the peritoneal cavity to offer their patients the benefits of this less invasive surgery.
As a surgery, it uses much smaller cuts than you’d think it does. Laparoscopy is a type of surgical procedure that allows a surgeon to access the inside of the abdomen and pelvis without having to make large cuts in the skin.
Usually, each one is no more than a half-inch long, which is why it is also called keyhole surgery. The surgeon inserts a tube through each opening, and the camera and surgical instruments go through those, after which the surgeon continues with the operation.
The process takes its name from the laparoscope, a slender tool that has a tiny video camera and light on the end. When a surgeon inserts it through a small cut and into your body, they can look at a video monitor and see what’s happening inside you. Without those tools, they’d have to make a much larger opening with much larger cuts.
Working this way has several advantages compared with traditional surgery. Because it involves less cutting: –
- You have smaller scars.
- You get out of the hospital quicker.
- You’ll feel less pain while the scars heal, and they heal quicker.
- You get back to your normal activities sooner.
- You may have less internal scarring.
Laparoscopy can be used to help diagnose a wide range of conditions that are located inside the abdomen or pelvis. It can also be used to remove a damaged or diseased organ or remove a tissue sample for further testing (biopsy).
Laparoscopy is most commonly used in: –
- Gynaecology: – The study and treatment of conditions affecting the female reproductive system.
- Gastroenterology: – The study and treatment of conditions affecting the digestive system.
- Urology: – The study and treatment of conditions affecting the urinary system.
