Complications of laparoscopy

Complications of laparoscopy
Aboubakr Elnashar
Benha university Hospital, EgyptABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Contents
A. Introduction
1.Rate
2.Risk factors
3.Contraindications
4.Types of complications
B. Complications
I. Related to abdominal access
II. Related to pneumoperitoneum
III. Related to tissue dissection and hemostasis
IV. Other complications
Summary and recommendations
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

A. INTRODUCTION
Rate:
Major complications: low. 1/1000
Complications related to initial abdominal access
less than 1%
Up to half of complications
[Magrina et al, 2002; Jiang et al, 2012].
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

A review of gynecologic procedures performed
from 1975 to 2002:
Access-related bowel injuries:
4.4/10,000 procedures
Entry-related vascular injuries:
3.1/10,000 procedures
[Jansen et al, 2004].
Hasson Vs closed entery:
 not associated with fewer complications
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

629 trocar injuries reported to the FDA included
408 injuries to major blood vessels
182 other injuries (mainly bowel injuries)
30 abdominal wall hematomas
[Bhoyrul et al, 2001].
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Mortality rate
0.03-0.49%
32 deaths
26: due to vascular injuries
Injury to the aorta and inferior vena cava: most
commonly
6: due to bowel injuries.
The diagnosis
delayed in 10%
mortality rate: 21%.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Laparoscopic Vs laparotmy complications:
less common
more serious.
8.9 % VS. 15.2%
(MA)
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Risk factors
1. Prior surgery for intraabdominal or pelvic
disease
Diverticulitis
PID
{adhesions}
2. Other conditions
1. Extensive bowel distention
2. Very large abdominal or pelvic mass
3. Diaphragmatic hernia
4. Poor cardiopulmonary reserve
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Prevention:
Plan laparoscopic approach
 an open approach may be preferred.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

 Surgeon experience
(number of the specific procedure)
for some, but not all, types of surgical procedures
{Amato et al, 2013].
low-volume Vs high-volume surgeons laparoscopic
hysterectomy
[Wright et al, 2012].
overall rates for complications were similar
(9.8 and 10.4 %, respectively)
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Absolute contraindications
 Uncorrectable coagulopathy
 Massive hemoperitoneum/hemoretroperitoneum
 Abdominal wall infection
 Generalized peritonitis
 Retroperitoneal abscess
 Intestinal obstruction
 Suspected malignant ascites
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Types of Complication
 Anesthesia
 Surgery
 Related to abdominal access
 Related to pneumoperitoneum
 Related to tissue dissection and hemostasis
 Immediate
 Delayed
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

I. RELATED TO ABDOMINAL ACCESS
1. Vascular injury
Rate:
0.1- 6.4/1000 = 0.9/1000
2nd to anesthesia as a cause of death from
laparoscopy
Most commonly occurs while
Placing a pneumoperitoneum needle (eg, Veress)
Primary trocar
Major vascular injuries
aorta, inferior vena cava, iliac vessels
Minor vascular injuries
vessels of the abdominal wall, mesentery, or other
organs.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

I. Minor vessels injuries
Identification:
using probing instruments or
an irrigator-aspirator.
TT:
Blood transfusion
conversion to an open procedure, or
reoperation.
coagulated or clipped.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

1. laceration of the inferior epigastric artery
During:
placement of lateral trocars (usually as
secondary trocars) in the lower abdomen
The most common vascular injury
More common than injury to the superior
epigastric vessels
{superior epigastric vessels in the upper
abdominal wall often form a plexus of arteries}
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

2. Omental and mesenteric vessels
During:
initial abdominal access to establish
pneumoperitoneum particularly if there are
adhesions
3. Other abdominal wall vessels
When:
 trocar is not placed under direct vision
secondary trocars are placed without prior
transillumination of the abdominal wall to
identify their presence.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

4. Bleeding due to a vascular injury at a port site
may not be observed with the port site cannulas in
place and the abdomen insufflated { tamponade}.
Delayed bleeding
typically within one hour
can present 2 or3days after surgery.
Clinical manifestations:
abdominal wall pain
abdominal wall or flank ecchymosis
external bleeding from a trocar site.
hemodynamic instability
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

TT of abdominal wall hematoma
Conservative:
Hemodynamically stable
No signs of hematoma expansion
Intervention
hematoma expands
hemodynamically unstable
hematoma becomes infected.
open surgical approach.
Percutaneous embolization
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

II. Major vessels
Rare
0.1 to 1.0%
Injury to major venous structures
inferior vena cava, iliac vein:
massive air embolism
{unrecognized IV placement of a
pneumoperitoneum needle and subsequent
gas insufflation}
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Cause:
lack of appreciation for the proximity of important
vascular structures to the anterior abdominal wall
The distance from the anterior abdominal wall
to the aorta can be as little as 2 cm in thin
individuals
The distal aorta, which lies directly beneath the
umbilicus
Right common iliac artery, which crosses the
midline
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Identification
rapid exsanguination and death
free blood in the abdominal cavity.
may not be appreciated right away
{bleeding into the mesentery or retroperitoneum}
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Treatment
1. Consultation with a surgeon experienced with
vascular procedure
2. The anesthesia team should be immediately
notified
3. Minimize hypotension and blood loss
maintain the extremities in an elevated position
abdomen should be rapidly opened with a
midline incision
pressure applied directly to the bleeding site
for initial control
abdominal cavity can be packed, if needed.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Management of hemorrhage
Prevention
Meticulous hemostasis during dissection
Significant hemorrhage
immediately notify the anesthesiologist for
fluid resuscitation
Transfusion
potential need to convert to an open
procedure.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Mild-to-moderate bleeding
Local compression
allows a surgeon time to consider strategies for
definitive hemostasis
definitive treatment.
Dry hemostatic agents
Surgicel, Gelfoam can be passed through a
laparoscopic port and used in conjunction with
mechanical compression.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Once bleeding has slowed or ceased
area is inspected to identify the bleeding point
 isolated and controlled with
clip, suture, cautery
The field should then be irrigated carefully with
saline.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

2. Conversion to an open procedure due to bleeding
Determined by
1. Bleeding
1. Rate, amount
2. Presence (or lack) of a clearly defined source
2. Patient:
1. Clinical status: tachycardia, hypotension, sepsis
2. advanced age or poor functional status and
comorbidities: cardiopulmonary conditions, obesity,
cirrhosis, clotting disorders
3. Surgeon:
Comfort of the surgeon with his or her ability to see and
control the bleeding quickly using laparoscopic
techniques.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

3. Gastrointestinal puncture
Rate:
0.03 to 0.18% =1.8/1000
3rd leading cause of death, after anesthesia and
major vascular injury
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Due to:
Electrosurgery
Pneumoperitoneum needle (eg, Veress)
Trocar placement
Sites:
The small bowel is the most commonly injured
during abdominal access
stomach, liver, and colon injuries have been
reported when subcostal access techniques are
used
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Prevention:
Decompressing the stomach with an
orogastric or nasogastric tube prior to upper
abdominal access
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Identification
±Delayed:
Postoperative often following discharge
peritonitis
significant cause of morbidity and mortality
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

TT:
Injuries due to the pneumoperitoneum needle
(eg, Veress):
conservatively.
Most other trocar punctures:
simple primary closure
reapproximating the bowel wall with simple
sutures in one or two layers.
discrete large bowel injuries:
colostomy is rarely needed.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

4. Urinary injury
Bladder puncture
Rate:
rare
Risk:
1. history of prior pelvic surgery
2. primary or secondary trocar insertion, when a
midline, suprapubic trocar is placed in a patient
with an over distended bladder.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Prevention
1. Foley catheter should be placed to decompress
the bladder.
2. The catheter can also provide a means for early
recognition of this complication.
 Clinical signs
 gaseous distention of the urinary drainage bag
 bloody urine.
 If a bladder injury is suspected
instillation of indigo carmine or methylene blue into
the bladder may aid in identifying an injury.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

TT:
If the bladder is punctured with a pneumoperitoneum
needle (eg, Veress):
repair is generally not needed.
Small 3 to 5 mm punctures in the dome of the
bladder
generally resolve spontaneously with bladder
decompression for 7 to 10 days.
Larger or irregular defects
suture closure with absorbable sutures using an open or
laparoscopic approach .
The Foley catheter should be left in place for 4 to 10 days
depending on the size and location of the puncture or tear.
If the operating surgeon is unsure of bladder
management:
urology consultation
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

5. Nerve injury
Not likely to be recognized intraoperatively
 can result in persistent postoperative pain.
Prevention:
The location of port sites
Procedure-specific dissection should keep
neighboring nerves in mind.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

6. Port-site hernia
Rate:
up to 6% = 2.1/1000
less common compared with incisional hernia
occurring after open surgery
Increase with
1. More complex procedures:
1. multiple ancillary ports
2. larger diameter ports used for specimen
removal, stapling devices
2. Single-site surgery
3. Other factors:
1. older age
2. higher BMI
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Clinical manifestations
gross disruption of the wound with drainage
 with exertion or Valsalva: bulge
if bowel or omentum is incarcerated: painful
continuous bulge
±clinical signs of bowel obstruction or infarction
Prevention:
Close fascial defects if a port >12 mm
some advocate repairing port sites ≥10 mm
TT:
 repair to prevent the development of intestinal
complications (obstruction, strangulation)
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

7. Surgical site infection
Rate:
less common following laparoscopic compared with
open procedures
CP:
peri-incisional erythema
wound drainage
Fever {±necrotizing fascial infection}
umbilicus is more common site infection
{use of the umbilicus as a specimen extraction site}
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Prevention:
1. prophylactic antibiotics
2. sterile technique
3. use of bags during specimen extraction.
TT:
1. drainage,
2. Packing
3. antibiotics.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

II. RELATED TO PNEUMOPERITONEUM
1. SC and mediastinal emphysema
due to insufflation of an improperly
positioned pneumoperitoneum needle (eg, Veress)
or port.
20/1000
2. Pneumothorax, cardiac arrhythmia, carbon
dioxide retention
Related to the physiologic effects of insufflation.
Patients who have poor cardiopulmonary
reserve are not likely to be offered a laparoscopic
procedure: these complications are uncommon.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

3. Postoperative abdominal or shoulder pain
 {retained CO}
 referred pain
{irritation of the diaphragm}.
4. Air embolism due to venous injury.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

III. RELATED TO TISSUE DISSECTION AND
HEMOSTASIS
1. Vascular injuries
 More commonly
 related to abdominal acess
 Injuries to
 inferior vena cava
 left hepatic vein
 abdominal aorta
 inferior phrenic vessels
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Cause of significant hge: Technical error
1. inadvertent cautery away from the field of
dissection
2. excessive thermal spread
3. improper staple length, height, or stapling
technique
4. failure to recognize a significant vascular structure
prior to its division with nonvascular stapling
instrument.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

2. Gastrointestinal injury
Serious
delayed diagnosis increases the risk of bowel
necrosis, perforation, and potentially death
Cause:
1. during abdominal access
2. electrosurgical injury
3. trauma during dissection or manipulation.
Symptoms
manifest within 12 to 36h postoperatively
can be delayed for up to 5-7 days.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Suspicion:
1. If a patient does not gradually improve following
laparoscopic surgery:
abdominal pain, tachycardia or fever
2. Free intraabdominal air on imaging
not be helpful
{40%of patients will have more than 2 cm of free air at 24 h
post laparoscopy,.
often may be seen on a radiograph up to a week
postoperatively}
 Volume:
should gradually decrease with time
increasing suggests ruptured viscus until proven
otherwise.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

TT:
Electrosurgical injuries identified in the operating
room
 inverted and oversewn
to healthy tissue at the margins, or
Resection
(with a 1 to 2 cm margin around the injury site)
{visible thermal injury is always less than the
actual injury}
1. significant size
2. any risk of not getting a healthy tissue
margin.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

3. Urinary injury
Bladder injury
Causes:
during the insertion of trocars
thermal injury during dissection
Rate:
less than 0.5%
varies widely depending upon the type of
surgery being performed
TT:
simple catheterization
laparotomy
depending upon the severity of the injury.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Ureteral injury
Rate:
less than 2%
Cause:
pelvic dissection
thermal injury by excessive use of an energy
source adjacent the ureter
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Prevention:
If pelvic dissection is anticipated to be in an
inflamed operative field or reoperative field:
1. ureteral stents
to help identify the ureters to minimize
ureteral injury
injury can still occur
2. identification of the ureter
The best mean
using anatomic landmarks
observation of peristalsis
3. dissection and mobilization of the ureter
With complex surgeries or
where anatomy is unclear
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

4. confirm and document the integrity of the ureters
before closing.
At the conclusion of any laparoscopic procedure
in which the operative field is in the vicinity of the
ureter(s)
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

IV. OTHER COMPLICATIONS
1. Port site metastasis
Rate:
1-2%of laparoscopic procedures performed in the
presence of intraperitoneal malignancy
 equivalent to the rate of wound metastasis after
laparotomy performed under similar conditions
Observed in:
as little as 10 days following laparoscopy.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Mechanisms
hematogenous spread
direct contamination by tumor cells
secondary effects from pneumoperitoneum (eg,
immune suppression), and surgical technique
Prevention:
use of wound protectors
specimen extraction bags
instillation of agents to prevent tumor growth
port-site excision.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

2. Vulvar edema
few case reports of unilateral vulvar edema after
operative laparoscopy
Mechanism
Unclear
condition is self-limited and resolves
TT:
ice packs
 bladder catheterization
analgesia
swelling related to vascular bleeding and may
require intervention
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Triad of major laparoscopic complications
Urinary
(least during
entry)
Bowel
(most
common in
general)
TRIAD
Vascular
(suspected on
sudden
hypotension on
entry)
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR
You can get:
 This lecture from:
1.My scientific page on Face book:
Aboubakr Elnashar Lectures.
https://www.facebook.com/group
s/227744884091351/
2.Slide share web site
3.elnashar53@hotmail.com
 All lectures from:
My clinic, 3 Althawra St. Almansura

SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Most complications occur during abdominal
access, but other complications can occur related to
abdominal insufflation and tissue dissection.
The overall rate of these complications is low
Prevention:
Proper selection of patients, knowledge of
surgical anatomy, and attention to proper
abdominal
access techniques
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Risk factors
Prior surgery/abdominal adhesions
excessive bowel distention
very large abdominal or pelvic masses,
diaphragmatic hernia.
Patients with poor cardiopulmonary reserve may
not tolerate pneumoperitoneum.
For patients with risk factors for laparoscopic
complications
an open surgical approach may be preferred.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Vascular injury
most commonly occurs during abdominal access
second only to anesthesia as a cause of death from
laparoscopy.
The most common vascular injury overall is
laceration of the inferior epigastric artery
injury to major vascular structures can occur and are
life-threatening injuries
may not be immediately appreciated during
laparoscopy because bleeding
can be retroperitoneal, rather than into the peritoneal
cavity, or tamponaded by a port.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

When minor abdominal wall vessel injury is
unrecognized:
an abdominal wall hematoma may occur; most of
which can be managed conservatively.
When major vascular injury is identified:
consultation with a surgeon experienced with
vascular procedures should be obtained without
delay.
Significant hemorrhage
can often be attributed to a technical error such as
inadvertent cautery away from the field of dissection
excessive thermal spread of electrocautery
improper staple length, height, or stapling technique;
failure to recognize a significant vascular structure
prior to its division with a nonvascular staplingABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

As in open surgery, mechanical compression and
application of topical hemostatic agents are appropriate
initial strategies. Moderate bleeding during laparoscopic
surgery can be controlled with clips, suture ligation, or
electrosurgical methods depending upon the source of
bleeding and nature of surrounding tissues.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

An important source of patient morbidity results
from the failure to convert to an open procedure in
a timely fashion when control of bleeding is
challenging. Laparoscopic hemostasis that is
partially effective or ineffective can lead to
significant blood loss and its associated clinical
consequences.
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Injury to the bowel
can relate to initial abdominal access or during the
course of the operation due to electrocautery, or
tissue trauma during dissection.
The small bowel is the most commonly injured GIT
structure during laparoscopic surgery, but stomach,
liver, and colon injury can also occur.
The frequency of gastrointestinal injury depends
upon the nature of the procedure.
Injury to the stomach can be minimized by
maintaining stomach decompression with a
nasogastric or orogastric tube during the procedure.
Any patient who does not gradually improve or who
continues to have abdominal pain following
laparoscopic surgery should be evaluated for possible
gastrointestinal injury. ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Injury to the bladder
most commonly occurs during abdominal access
rather than during the course of dissection.
A history of prior pelvic surgery increases the risk of
bladder injury.
The risk of bladder injury can be minimized by
catheterizing the patient prior to the procedure
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Port-site hernia
less common compared with incisional hernia
occurring after open surgery.
The risk increased with
larger diameter ports (≥12 mm), such as those
used for specimen removal, stapling devices
single-site surgery.
Other complications
include nerve injury, surgical site infection, upper
urinary tract injury, and port site metastasis
ABOUBAKR ELNASHAR

Aboubakr elnashar
You can get this lecture from:
1.My scientific page on Face book:
Aboubakr Elnashar Lectures.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2277
44884091351/
2.Slide share web site
3.elnashar53@hotmail.com
4.My clinic: Elthwara St. Mansura

Complications of laparoscopy

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