Single-incision laparoscopic right hemicolectomy: safety and feasibility in a series of consecutive cases

Single-incision laparoscopic colectomy (SILC) is rapidly emerging in the field of minimally invasive colon and rectal surgery. This report presents the safety and feasibility of performing SILC right hemicolectomy with the SILS™ Port Multiple Instrument Access Port.

Between July 2009 and October 2009, SILC right hemicolectomy was performed for 13 consecutive, unselected patients presenting with benign or malignant pathology. Demographic data, intraoperative parameters, and postoperative outcomes were assessed.

For 11 of the 13 patients (84.6%), the SILC procedure was performed with a mean incision length of 3.1 ± 1.1 cm (range, 2.5–6.0 cm) and a mean operative time of 131.5 ± 36.2 min (range, 79–180 min). Two cases required conversion to hand-assisted technique. Overall, the operative time was found to be significantly longer for the patients with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 25 kg/m² (152.1 ± 26.6 min) compared with the patients with a BMI less than 25 kg/m² (93.3 ± 11.6 min) (p < 0.002). For the subset of patients with malignant disease (five adenocarcinomas and one carcinoid), the mean number of lymph nodes extracted was 26.7 ± 14.5. There were no intraoperative complications, and the overall mean hospital stay was 2.5 ± 0.7 days (range, 2–4 days). One postoperative complication occurred (7.7%).

The SILC procedure is a safe and feasible method for benign and malignant diseases requiring a right hemicolectomy. This method results in a low complication rate and a short postoperative hospital stay.