Minimally invasive surgery is a philosophy of patient care. This mainly accomplished through the use of laparoscopic, thorascopic, and needlescopic procedures. This surgery is minimally invasive because only a few small holes are made in the body for the insertion of operating instruments instead of the big incision that used to be required for the surgeon to see and get his or her hands in. A laparoscope is like a small telescope that the surgeon inserts into the belly. A miniature video camera connected to the end allows the surgeon see.
Needlescopic surgery is a form of laparoscopic surgery that refers to the size of the instruments.
Traditional laparoscopic instruments require 5 to 12 mm holes. With advances in technology, many traditional laparoscopic procedures can now be performed with instruments that require only 2 to 3 mm holes. When gallbladder surgery is performed this way patients have much smaller incisions. As a result patients have less pain, are able to drink and eat sooner, spend less time in hospital and return to work or their normal activities sooner than if they had their surgery done with a large incision. Gallbladder surgery which in some cases used to require a seven to ten day hospital stay is now performed primarily as an outpatient procedure.