Gallbladder removal - laparoscopic - Symptoms,Causes
Laparoscopic gallbladder removal is surgery to remove the using a medical device called a laparoscope.
Description
Using a laparoscope is the most common way to remove the gallbladder. A laparoscope is a thin, lighted tube that lets the doctor see inside your belly.
Gallbladder removal surgery is done while you are under general anesthesia (unconscious and not able to feel pain). The surgeon will make 3 to 4 small cuts in your belly. The laparoscope will be inserted through 1 of the cuts. Other medical instruments will be inserted through the other cuts. Gas will be pumped into your belly to expand it. This gives the surgeon more space to work.
First, the surgeon cuts the bile duct and blood vessels that lead to the gallbladder. Then the surgeon removes the gallbladder, using the laparoscope.
A special x-ray called a will be done during your surgery. This involves squirting some dye into your common bile duct. This duct will be left inside you after your gallbladder has been removed. The dye helps locate other stones that may be outside your gallbladder. If any are found, the surgeon may be able to remove these other stones with a special medical instrument.
Sometimes the surgeon cannot safely take out the gallbladder using a laparoscope. In this case, the surgeon will instead do an open cholecystectomy.
See also: Gallbladder removal - openGallbladder removal - open
Why the Procedure is Performed
Your doctor may recommend gallbladder removal surgery if you have gallstones or your is not functioning normally (biliary dyskinesia). You may have some or all of these symptoms:
Pain after eating, usually in the upper right or upper middle area of your belly (epigastric pain)
Nausea and vomitingNausea and vomiting
IndigestionIndigestion
Infection
Most people have fewer problems and a shorter hospital stay when their gallbladder is removed using a laparoscope compared to people who have open surgery. You will also have smaller incisions.
Risks
The risks for any anesthesia include:
Reactions to drugs you are given
Breathing problemsBreathing problems
PneumoniaPneumonia
Heart problems
Blood clotsBlood clots in the legs or lungslungs
The risks for gallbladder surgery include:
BleedingBleeding
Infection in your belly
Injury to the common bile duct
Injury to the small intestine
PancreatitisPancreatitis (inflammation in the pancreas)
Before the Procedure
Your doctor may ask you to have these medical tests done before you have surgery:
Blood tests (complete blood countcomplete blood count, electrolytes, and kidney tests)
Chest x-rayChest x-ray or electrocardiogram (EKG), for some people
Several x-rays of the gallbladder
Always tell your doctor or nurse:
If you are or might be pregnant
What drugs, vitamins, and other supplements you are taking, even ones you bought without a prescription
During the week before your surgery:
You may be asked to stop taking aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), vitamin E, warfarin (Coumadin), and any other drugs that make it hard for your blood to clot.
Your doctor may ask you to "clean out" your colon or intestines.
Ask your doctor which drugs you should still take on the day of your surgery.
On the day of your surgery:
Do not eat or drink anything after midnight the night before your surgery.
Take the drugs your doctor told you to take with a small sip of water.
Shower the night before or the morning of your surgery.
Your doctor or nurse will tell you when to arrive at the hospital.
Prepare your home for after the surgery.
Update Date: Updated by: Robert J. Fitzgibbons, Jr., MD, FACS, Harry E. Stuckenhoff Professor of Surgery, Chief of General Surgery, and Associate Chairman, Department of Surgery, Creighton University School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.
Gallbladder removal - laparoscopic - Symptoms,Causes
