Laparoscopic or “minimally invasive” surgery is a specialized technique for surgery. Traditionally in “open” surgery, the surgeon uses a single incision to enter into the abdomen whereas Laparoscopic surgery uses several 0.5-1 cm incisions. Each incision is called a “port.” Specific instruments and a special camera known as a “laparoscope” are passed through the ports during the procedure.

The laparoscope transmits images from the abdominal cavity to high-resolution video monitors in the operating room. During the time of the operation, the surgeon watches accurate and full images of the abdomen on the monitor. This surgery is the same as traditional surgery but with smaller incisions.