Diagnostic laparoscopy is a common surgical procedure that is often used for diagnostic purposes. Laparoscopy is also called diagnostic laparoscopy. Laparoscopy is a surgical diagnostic technique used to inspect the organs inside the abdomen.
It is also popular due to its merits like low risk, less pain, minimally invasive with less scars procedure that requires small incisional entry points (cuts) of 1 to 1.5cm (0.4inches to 0.6inches) usually on your abdomen.
Laparoscopy needs special equipment called a laparoscope to look inside the abdomen and inspect the organs. Laparoscope is a long thin tube with a micro camera on top and an extreme focus light. This equipment is embedded through an entry point (incision) in the abdominal wall. As it moves inside the abdomen, the camera sends pictures to a video screen connected to the laparoscope.
Laparoscopy helps a doctor view the abdomen in real-time, without open surgery. It also helps doctors to collect biopsy samples during the operation.
When is Laparoscopy recommended?
Laparoscopy is frequently used to distinguish and diagnose the wellspring of pelvic or abdominal pain. It’s normally performed when noninvasive strategies can’t help with determination.
In many cases, abdominal problems can also be diagnosed with imaging techniques such as:
In certain cases, abdominal issues can likewise be diagnosed along with imaging methods, for example,
- Ultrasound, which allows high-frequency sound waves to make pictures of the body
- CT scan is used to take a series of specific X-rays that enable to take cross-sectional pictures of the body
- MRI scan helps to create pictures of the body with the help of magnets and radio waves
When these don’t present enough required information and insight about the problem for a diagnosis, laparoscopy is performed to get a conclusion. It also helps to collect biopsy samples, and tissue samples of a specific organ in the abdomen.
Our surgeon Dr. Valeria Simone MD at Southlake General Surgery may suggest for diagnostic laparoscopy to examine the accompanying organs:
- gallbladder
- liver
- appendix
- small and large intestines (colon)
- spleen
- stomach
- pancreas
- pelvic or reproductive organs
By examining these areas with a laparoscope, our surgeon can identify:
- an abdominal tumor or mass
- abdominal cavity fluid also called ascites
- liver disease
- the viability of specific treatments
- the degree to which a specific cancer has advanced
Our Laparoscopic Surgeon Dr. Valeria Simone MD might have the option to play out an intercession to treat your condition instantly after diagnosis.
Request an Appointment at Southlake General Surgery
How is Laparoscopy Diagnostic Performed?
Laparoscopy is typically done in an outpatient system. This implies that you’ll have the option to return home the very same day as your surgery. It very well might be performed in a hospital or an outpatient surgical facility.
You’ll probably be given general anesthesia for this sort of medical procedure. This implies that you’ll be unconscious during the operation and won’t feel any pain. For general anesthesia, an intravenous (IV) line is embedded in one of your veins. Through the IV, your anesthesiologist can give you special drugs as well as give you hydration liquids.
In a few cases, local anesthesia is used to numb the area, which means you’ll be conscious during the surgery; however, you’ll not feel any pain.
During laparoscopy surgery, the surgeon makes an entry point (cuts) underneath your belly button to embed a little tube known as a cannula. The cannula helps to inflate your midsection with carbon dioxide gas. This gas helps the surgeon to view your stomach organs even more obviously.
When your stomach is inflated, the surgeon embeds the laparoscope through the entry point. The camera joined to the laparoscope shows the pictures on a screen, permitting your organs to be seen in real-time.
The number and size of cuts rely on what specific problem your doctor is endeavoring to affirm or preclude. Mainly, you get from one to four entry points (cuts) that are each somewhere in the range of 1 and 2 centimeters long. These entry points permit different instruments to be embedded. For instance, your surgeon may require utilizing another surgical device to do a biopsy. In a biopsy, they take a small sample of tissue from an organ to be assessed.
Once the surgery is completed doctor removes the laparoscopic equipment and closes the incisions with stitches or surgical tape.
Recovery Time after Laparoscopy Procedure
Once the surgery is finished, you’ll be monitored for a few hours before you’re discharged from the hospital. Your indispensable signs, like your breathing and pulse, will be observed intently. Hospital staff will likewise check for any antagonistic responses to the anesthesia or the surgery, just as a screen for prolonged bleeding.
The timing of your discharge may fluctuate. It relies upon:
- your overall health conditions
- the sort of anesthesia used
- your body’s response to the surgery
In a few instances, you may have to stay in the hospital overnight.
If general anesthesia is used during the surgery, it is necessary to have a family member or companion to drive home safely. It takes a couple of hours to get normal from the impact of general anesthesia, so it tends to be risky to drive just after hospital discharge.
Post laparoscopy surgery, you may feel moderate pain and pound in the regions where cuts were made. Any pain or distress ought to improve within a couple of days. Your surgeon may endorse a prescription to relieve the pain.
You might feel shoulder pain after your surgery. The pain is generally an after-effect of the carbon dioxide gas used to inflate your abdomen to make a working space for the surgical equipment. The gas can aggravate your diaphragm, which also shares nerves with your shoulder. It might likewise cause some swelling. The inconvenience ought to disappear in a couple of days.
You can continue all normal activities for about a week or so. You’ll have to go to a subsequent follow-up with your surgeon around two weeks post laparoscopy procedure.
To ensure faster and smoother recovery, you can do the following things:
- Start with small activities when are able, to decrease the chances of blood clots.
- Take ample rest than you normally do.
- Wear comfortable and loose clothes.
- Use throat capsules to facilitate the pain of an irritated throat.
To examine the recovery process, your doctor will schedule an appointment with you. If a serious ailment was discovered, your doctor will talk about suitable treatment options with you and work with you to think of an arrangement for tending to that condition.
Outlook
Diagnostic laparoscopy treatment is a medical procedure that allows doctors to inspect the organs and tissues located within the abdominal cavity without having to make significant cuts in the skin.
During the operation, small incisions are made on the patient’s abdomen by the surgeon, who then inserts a laparoscope. A laparoscope is a thin instrument with a camera and a light at the end that enables doctors to look within the body.
Patients can normally return home the same day after the treatment, which is typically carried out while they are under general anesthesia. The majority of patients have a speedy recovery following diagnostic laparoscopy, and they are able to go back to work and their regular activities within a week’s time.
Appointment
For more information on diagnostic laparoscopy procedure and recovery or consultation with Dr. Valeria Simone MD at Southlake General Surgery, Texas, USA, please contact our healthcare expert at +1 (817) 748-0200.