Minimally Invasive Surgery Defined

Minimally Invasive Surgery represents a revolution in surgical practice and technology. Compared with traditional open surgery, minimally invasive procedures result in less tissue trauma, less scarring, and faster postoperative recovery time. Although the techniques vary from procedure to procedure and among different surgical subspecialties, all minimally invasive surgical procedures employ video cameras and lens systems to provide anatomic visualization within a region of the body.

Achieving such visualization requires the creation and maintenance of an optical cavity, most commonly created with carbon dioxide insufflation. Using short incisions in the skin, surgeons insert narrow tubes through the abdominal wall so that instruments can be slid through them to perform the maneuvers necessary for the operation. All this is viewed directly on a video monitor that receives its picture from a video camera attached to the laparoscope. Video cameras and specialized surgical instruments can be inserted through small access incisions in the skin and utilized within the optical cavity for the removal or repair of an organ system.