Postoperative adhesive peritoneal disease. Laparoscopic treatment.

The aim of this prospective study was to judge the efficiency of laparoscopic adhesiolysis: 52 patients have been treated laparoscopically either for obstruction (group 1: 17 patients) or for chronical abdominal pain (group 2: 35 patients). Two out of five peroperative complications required a laparoconversion whereas two postoperative complications required a laparotomy for intestinal obstruction. Six patients of group 1 developed a recurrence of obstruction treated by laparoscopy in four and by laparotomy in two cases. At the time of the study (among 50 patients with a mean follow-up of 24 months), 32 patients were asymptomatic, 13 found that their symptoms had lessened, and finally, five patients were not improved. We concluded that laparoscopic adhesiolysis is an attractive surgical procedure, allowing a clinical improvement in 45 out of 50 patients in our study.