Minimally Invasive Surgery Increasingly Common

2008-09-25 21:58:08 (GMT) (WiredPRNews.com - Health & Fitness, Top Stories)

A small cut allows surgeons to extract gallbladders, kidneys and other organs with less patient downtime and nearly undetectable scaring.

Fort Worth, TX (WiredPRNews.com)—Innovations in microsurgery make it possible to remove gallbladders, kidneys and other organs through a small incision.

According to a Fort Worth Star-Telegram article by Jan Jarvis that appeared on March 8, 2008, a half-inch cut in the patient’s bellybutton allows the surgeon to insert a tube-sized video camera for observation. The surgeon then either inserts a tool to cut up the affected area or a suction tube to remove the contents, depending on the situation.

The article indicated that gallbladder extraction has been successfully done with this method and one example is professional golfer Melanie Willhite. The Dallas-area native had the single-incision procedure done at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas where her gallbladder was removed in January.

Dr. Homero Rivas stated in the article that this kind of surgery reduces post-surgery discomfort and recovery time. Rivas, who is an assistant professor of surgery at the hospital where Willhite’s procedure was done, said in the article that the bellybutton incision makes it nearly impossible to see where the cut was made.

Willhite, who had gallbladder problems for years, was able to get back on the golf course a week after the microsurgery, according to the Star-Telegram article.

Single cut surgeries, which are similar to the ones done via the patient’s bellybutton, have been used in hysterectomies and appendectomies according to the article.

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Jason Meeks · Filed Under Health & Fitness, Top Stories