Laparoscopy in infants and children: a prospective study on feasibility and the impact on routine surgery

The feasibility of laparoscopy in children and its impact on routine pediatric surgery are not well established. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of laparoscopy in a university department of pediatric surgery.

All children undergoing laparoscopy during the period of 1 year were included in a prospective trial. Data on patients, the operation, technical problems, intraoperative events, and the postoperative course were documented using standardized questionnaires. All patients underwent at least 1 follow-up assessment 2 weeks after the operation. All conventional abdominal operations performed during the same period were analyzed for comparison purposes.

Of 244 abdominal operations performed during the study period, 147 (60.2%) were laparoscopies. One hundred twenty-three (83.7%) of these included a laparoscopic operation, and 24 (16.3%) were diagnostic procedures. Of 26 types of laparoscopic operations 3 were performed more than 15 times (fundoplication, appendectomy, pyloromyotomy), and 9 types were performed once. Problems with instruments and devices led to a mean time loss of 15.1 minutes in 15.6% of the procedures. The conversion rate was 10.1% mainly because of complicated appendicitis. Fifty-six children (38.1%) weighed less than 10 kg, and the conversion rate did not correlate with the body weight. There was 1 (0.07%) intraoperative event. A small bowel perforation was identified immediately and resolved with an uneventful course. Postoperative complications included an incisional hernia in 3 children and an incisional leakage of liquor in 1 child with a ventriculoperitoneal drain. There was a reprolaps after laparoscopic correction of an ileostomy in 1 child and fever in another. In 3 newborns the diagnosis was missed during laparoscopy and had to be established by laparotomy later with an uneventful course. Primary conventional operations were mainly restricted to bowel resection and anastomosis performed in 52 of 97 laparotomies.

The authors showed that 60% of abdominal operations in children can be performed via laparoscopy. Most types of laparoscopic operations are not performed frequently, but the feasibility of the technique in routine use is excellent. However, the performance of instruments should be improved further, and laparoscopy for establishing the diagnosis in newborns remains difficult.