Abdominal endoscopy, or laparoscopy, is a diagnostic and surgical procedure. The procedure is used in a variety of medical settings and carries relatively few risks.
What is a laparoscopy?
Laparoscopy is also known as laparoscopy in the medical field. During a laparoscopy, a patient’s abdominal cavity can be viewed from the inside with the help of a laparoscope (a special endoscope). A laparoscope usually has a camera, a light source and a lens magnification system. These tools are mounted on the end of a thin tube. In most cases, a laparoscope used for laparoscopy also has devices for irrigation and suction. A laparoscopy is usually performed under general anesthesia. The patient must be fasting, which means that he or she must not eat or drink anything for about 6-8 hours before the procedure. During laparoscopy, the abdominal wall is pierced in order to insert the laparoscope into the abdominal cavity after a few steps.
Function, application and goals
Applied laparoscopy is used in medicine for various purposes. While it can be used, for example, to diagnose diseases or injuries, it is also possible to perform so-called minimally invasive procedures during laparoscopy. For this purpose, various surgical instruments can also be inserted into the abdominal cavity via the laparoscope. One of the advantages of such a procedure in the context of an abdominal endoscopy is that no large abdominal incisions are required. In the diagnostic field, laparoscopy is used, for example, to assess pathological changes in organs or tissue in the abdominal cavity. Corresponding organs include the stomach, liver or spleen. With the help of laparoscopy, their position, size and condition can be checked, for example. However, the frequency of abdominal endoscopy for purely diagnostic purposes is increasingly decreasing, as procedures such as magnetic resonance imaging or ultrasound can also be used today. One advantage of laparoscopy as a diagnostic procedure is that biopsies (tissue samples) can be taken. A common surgical procedure performed today with the help of laparoscopy is, for example, the removal of the gallbladder. This may occasionally be necessary if patients have cholecystitis. Today, about 90 percent of all gallbladder removals are performed using laparoscopy. Furthermore, the removal of the appendix in the case of acute appendicitis can also be performed by laparoscopy. Other possible surgical procedures by laparoscopy involve the intestines or adhesions in the abdominal cavity that need to be released. In the field of gynecology (women’s medicine), laparoscopy is also frequently used for minimally invasive procedures; for example, it can be used to remove cysts (cavities filled with fluid) that have formed on the ovaries. In gynecology, laparoscopy is also occasionally used for diagnostic purposes. For example, it can provide information about the background of chronic abdominal pain.
Risks and dangers
As a surgical measure, laparoscopy is a relatively harmless procedure. Appropriate body cavities need to be opened only minimally, which is why construction endoscopy is also called a minimally invasive procedure. However, the first piercing of the abdominal wall in a laparoscopy is performed ‘blindly’, which means that this step of the procedure cannot be visually controlled. Therefore, there is a risk here that blood vessels or organs may be injured. If such an injury occurs during an abdominal endoscopy, it is often necessary to surgically open the abdominal cavity in order to continue the procedure this way. After the initial piercing of the abdominal cavity during an abdominal endoscopy, gas is first introduced into the abdominal cavity. Often, this gas is carbon dioxide. The gas dilates the abdominal cavity so that organs and other structures are more accessible surgically during an abdominal endoscopy. In patients suffering from cardiovascular disorders or lung diseases, for example, the gas introduced during laparoscopy may not be well tolerated.Affected patients may then experience temporary circulatory disturbances.
