Laparoscopic surgery, also called minimally invasive surgery, is a method in which the surgical team “identifies” the patient, through holes ranging from 5 to 10 mm in size, working devices and a camera, in order to perform the procedure.
Therefore, it is a surgery that is performed through very small incisions compared to the traditional surgery in which a large incision is made. The introduction of laparoscopy has been the major development in modern surgical care. This approach allows for a faster patient recovery, less bleeding during surgery, fewer complications, as well as better aesthetic results, without compromising the safety or efficacy of the treatment. In fact, in recent years there has been an increasing use of laparoscopic surgery, so that some surgeries are performed almost exclusively by this approach, and the open approach is used only in rare cases.
Laparoscopy has been used for several years and currently, the type of surgeries performed with this technique has been expanded, in different situations, such as a laparoscopic hysterectomy, allowing the patient to be discharged on the first day after surgery. Other interventions can also be performed through this pathway, such as inguinal hernia correction surgeries, with the potential for other surgeries that have hitherto been performed in the traditional way it is performed.
Nono Teixeira
General Surgeon at Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Marco de Canaveses
