The No-Incision Appendectomy

U.S . doctors have made advances in surgery methods by a technique called "natural orifice" surgery. This type of surgery will shorten recovery, lessen pain, and do away with scarring. It has recently been performed on a 24-year-old patient in which her appendix was removed through her vagina. The surgeons made a small incision in the vaginal wall and passed surgical tools and a camera through to the appendix. They removed the organ through the same incision in the vagina. This procedure only took 20 minutes longer than a standard laparoscopic appendectomy, and the patient described her pain as if she had done too many sit-ups. This is good news for the experimental procedure, meaning that it works very well for recovery. Other natural openings, the mouth or the rectum, can also be used for the surgery.

This type of surgery is much less invasive than open surgery, and since the incisions are internal, they are able to heal more quickly than external incisions. This is because the internal tissue is much less sensitive than external tissue. Also, the risk of infection is anticipated to be much lower in natural orifice surgery since the wounds heal faster, and the longer the incision takes to heal, the greater the risk of infection.

Although there are so many benefits to this new type of surgery, there are still some complications. There becomes a risk of internal leakage and infection when the wounds are internal rather than external, especially when the incisions are in the stomach or the colon. Also, the surgical tools available are not as flexible as desired, so it is more difficult to maneuver them during surgery. New instruments could be designed for this type of surgery in order to combat the problem. Overall, the benefits outweigh the risks so far. Natural orifice surgery could soon become the new standard for surgery.

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1727656,00.html