Laparoscopic assisted surgery of the colon. Operative technique.

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is the most common major abdominal operation performed endoscopically. Other surgical procedures performed endoscopically include hysterectomy, hernia repair, Nissen fundoplication, and vagotomy. More recently, laparoscopic colectomy has been described (1,2). We have performed over fifty laparoscopic assisted colonic procedures, the results of which have been published (2). In this paper we describe the technique of two laparoscopic assisted procedures in colonic surgery--right and left hemicolectomy.