Laparoscopic cholecystectomy in elderly patients: A report of 118 cases / 中国微创外科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the characteristics of laparoscopic cholecystectomy(LC) in the elderly. Methods A retrospective analysis was made on clinical data of 118 elderly patients treated with LC in this hospital between January 2000 and January 2005. Results The LC was successfully completed in 116 patients,while conversions to open surgery were required in 2 patients due to low level of insertion of the cystic duct(1 patient) and common bile duct injury(1 patient).The operation time was(30~120 min)(mean,50 min).The postoperative recovery was uneventful in all the patients.The length of hospital stay after operation was 3~7 d(mean,4.5 d).The patient with common bile duct injury was followed for 2 years and 6 months.Transient onsets of abdominal pain and fever were noted and cured with antibiotics for 2~5 days.No biliary tract stenosis or bile duct calculus was seen.Follow-up observations in the remaining 117 patients for 6~12 months(mean,10.5 months) revealed no abdominal pain,fever,or jaundice. Conclusions Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is acceptable and safe for elderly patients.Proper peri-operative management and careful surgical performance are essential to the success of surgery.