We have tried to evaluate the role of laparoscopy and laparoscopic-assisted surgery in the management of @entity30 . Over a 4-year period, we had 38 @entity1 , of which 23 @entity1 were suspected to have @entity30 and were admitted for diagnostic laparoscopy while 15 @entity1 had already had a biopsy confirmation of @entity30 in the past and were admitted for specifically planned procedures. In the first group of 23 @entity1 , 11 were found not to have @entity30 . In the remaining 12 @entity1 , three were proven to have @entity30 , but no surgical procedure was undertaken. The remaining nine @entity1 underwent laparoscopic-assisted procedures, of which two required conversion to a laparotomy because of @entity6177 . All 15 @entity1 in the second group underwent laparoscopic or laparoscopic-assisted procedures. In total, 14 @entity1 were spared a potential diagnostic laparotomy and could go home the next day. The remaining 24 @entity1 underwent procedures requiring longer hospital stays; five had a purely laparoscopic procedure, 17 had a laparoscopic-assisted procedure, and two required a laparotomy. Although there was little difference in the median stay for @entity1 treated laparoscopically or by laparotomy, it is thought that the extent or severity of the disease process influenced the length of the stay rather than the approach used. The complication rate was similar to that found in @entity30 @entity1 undergoing open surgery. It remains to be seen whether those in the laparoscopically treated group have less adhesive complications than those treated by laparotomy. It is our belief that laparoscopy is a valuable aid in the diagnosis of @entity30 . It remains to be proven whether or not laparoscopic-assisted surgery will be of significant value in the treatment of this condition.

Laparoscopy in the diagnosis and management of XXXX .

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patients'] @entity6177 :: ('MESH:D018784', 'Disease') :: ['intra-abdominal abscesses'] @entity30 :: ('MESH:D003424', 'Disease') :: ["Crohn's", "Crohn's disease"]
@entity30 :: (MESH:D003424,Disease) :: ['Crohn's disease']
