Laparoscopic colon and rectal surgery

Abstract

The first series of 20 patients who underwent laparoscopic-assisted colectomy was published in 1991 by Jacobs et al. (2). The authors provided a detailed description of their technique. Other investigators were then stimulated to follow their lead. In the same year, others reported on laparoscopic colon operations (3-8). Subsequently, the literature has been replete with reports of series of varying sizes, innovative techniques for virtually every colorectal operation, and the results, complications, and consequences associated with the new technology.