Laparoscopy FAQs
What self-care is necessary after returning home?
Leave the adhesive bandage or dressing on the incision for five days. During that period, keep the incision area dry.
Avoid lifting heavy weights.
How long will it take for full recovery?
The following is a normal timetable for recovery from minimally invasive surgery on the abdomen
- The groggy feeling from the anesthetic disappears the day after surgery and the individual is fully alert once again.
- Any pain in the shoulders or neck area usually goes away after a few days.
- Soreness in the incisions disappears within a few days and the incisions heal after about five days.
- The bloated feeling after abdominal or pelvic laparoscopy goes away within a few days.
When can I go back to work?
ADepending on the procedure most people feel well enough to return to work or normal daily activities two to three days after laparoscopy, although some people may need a week of rest.
I’m confused about the medical terms for Minimally Invasive Surgery and the traditional open operations. Please elaborate.
Laparoscopy means surgery on the abdominal area using a Laparoscope. This is Minimally Invasive, or Band-Aid Surgery, which uses small incisions. Laparotomy is the term for the traditional open surgery on the abdomen, which involves a larger incision. There are many different terms used for specific types of minimally invasive surgery and the instruments used.
Why do people recover faster from minimally invasive surgery?
Mainly because of the small incisions. The large incision used in many traditional operations causes more damage to layers of skin, muscle, and other body tissue. It takes a long time for the body to repair that damage- usually about six weeks. During that period, patients often have to restrict their normal activities so that the incision heals properly. The incision also causes a good deal of discomfort that makes patients want to take it easy for several weeks.
The doctor wants to do a diagnostic laparoscopy to find out why I’m having pelvic pain. She says the surgery will take less than an hour, and I can go home right away and back to work the next day. If it is really that simple, why do I have to bring someone to the surgery center to drive me home?
Because of the effects of general anesthesia, you may feel groggy for a few hours after you awake and you may not be in complete control of the reflexes needed to drive a vehicle. It is safer to have someone else who is fully alert do the driving.
What can be done during Laparoscopy?
Once the abdominal cavity and the reproductive organs have been viewed, it is possible to operate thanks to thin surgery instruments which are inserted through 2 or 3 very small incisions (few millimetres long). The major benefits of this surgical procedure are: a milder post-operative pain, a shorter hospitalization and a smaller incision, with better aesthetic results compared with the conventional surgery.
When is Operative Laparoscopy better indicated?
Operative laparoscopy is mainly indicated to treat diseases of the adnexae (i.e. fallopian tubes and ovaries), therefore including: ectopic pregnancies in a fallopian tube, ovarian cysts of different type, such as endometriosic, liquid or dermoid cysts, etc. Other conditions include: treatment of endometriosis (with coagulation of pelvic focus), treatment of adhesions and possibility to perform tubal sterilisation procedures.
What other procedures can be achieved with Minimally Invasive Surgery?
ysterectomies have been done with Minimally Invasive Surgery. Other operations include the Birch Colposuspension for stress incontinence, uterine suspension, tuboplasty and tubal reanastomosis, pelvic tumor surgery to name a few.
How long does it take to do an operation with Minimally Invasive Surgery?
With carefully chosen cases, it should not take more than two hours to complete a procedure. Sometimes, however, it may be necessary to proceed to laparotomy if complications arise. Every patient should bear this in mind.
What is the approximate length of inpatient stay?
Generally, the duration of inpatient stay is shorter after Minimally Invasive Surgery although there is no hard and fast rule. Almost all patients need no catheterization as they can pass urine the same day. Most patients ambulate and can take feeds by the end of the day. An overnight stay or two is all that is required for most patients; however some may even be able to go back the same day.