[Laparoscopic surgery for endoscopically irretrievable colonic polyps]

The vast majority of benign colorectal neoplasms can be safely removed by colonoscopic polypectomy; while peduncolated polyps can be easily endoscopically excised, the removal of sessile polyps may be more difficult.

Between January 1997 and December 1998, 12 patients underwent laparoscopic or laparoscopic-assisted colonic resection for treatment of endoscopically irretrievable colonic polyps; this group was compared to 12 patients who underwent a laparotomic approach for polyps in the same period of time and to 23 patients who previously underwent similar laparoscopic resections.

There were no significant differences between laparoscopic and laparotomic groups.

Laparoscopic or laparoscopic-assisted colonic resection for treatment of endoscopically irretrievable colonic polyps remains our preferred method of treating these lesions.