Laparoscopic surgery and surgical infection

Laparoscopic surgery (LS) has improved our knowledge of some aspects of surgical physiopathology. Other advantages include a lower incidence of postoperative infections, as evidenced by a lower inflammatory response which is related to a better preserved immune response to infection. But, the differential aspects of LS may influence the intraperitoneal environment and, in case of infection, must be evaluated in two different situations: during clean and potentially-contaminated surgery or in the presence of established infection. The most important differential factors of LS are the pneumoperitoneum and the use of CO2. The influence of both these on the evolution of an intraperitoneal infecton has been of interest in recent years. Our department developed an experimental study with mice to evaluate the local and systemic inflammatory response to perioperative intra-abdominal contamination with a known inoculum of Escherichia coli. The animals were distributed in four groups: control, laparotomy, laparoscopy with CO2 pneumoperitoneum, and laparoscopy with wall traction. Peritoneal liquid and blood cultures such as peritoneal and systemic cytokine levels were analyzed. The results showed a better tolerance to perioperative contamination in LS groups while the CO2 pneumoperitoneum had no influence. But, in the presence of peritonitis, an elevated CO2 pneumoperitoneum can be dangerous and the operative time is an important factor to be considered. The literature is reviewed on the relationship between LS and surgical infection.