The range of bowel diseases is such that it leads thousands of patients every year in Greece to visit surgeons in order to find a solution to their problem.

These diseases may concern malignancies (cancerous tumors) and non-malignancies such as diverticulitis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, rectal prolapse, etc. Surgeons can remove the affected part and at the same time perform lymph node cleansing when this is deemed necessary. In any case, it is the doctor who will decide what is the best approach for the patient based on the diagnosis, symptoms and age.

What is bowel resection?

Bowel resection is also known as colectomy. Different types of colectomies are performed, such as partial colectomy, total colectomy, right colectomy, crossectomy, sigmoidectomy and involves the removal of the affected part of the intestine. A partial colectomy or hemicolectomy involves the removal of part of the colon.

What techniques are there?

The surgeon can perform such an operation using the traditional “open” technique. This involves an incision in the abdominal wall (usually a midline laparotomy) that allows access to the site of the lesion by the surgeon and the use of classic open surgery tools.

Two techniques referred to as “minimally invasive” have been developed over the years. The laparoscopic and robotic surgical method with the most widespread and globally used Da Vinci robotic system. Both approaches require very small incisions in the abdominal wall through which the surgeon passes the camera and the necessary instruments.

In laparoscopic surgery, surgeons use a laparoscope with a camera attached to its end that transmits the image of the inside of the abdomen to a screen located inside the operating room. This technology has evolved to such an extent that it also gives the surgeon 3D imaging.

The robotic approach is performed with the Da Vinci system. It requires incisions in the abdominal wall of just a few millimeters. The surgeon sits at the console of the system, inside the operating room, and moves through it the arms that hold the instruments. The system provides a three-dimensional, high definition and magnified image, ten times larger than that of the human eye. It allows the surgeon to reach “hard-to-reach” places with the special trocars held by the Da Vinci arms. The technical precision of its movements has foreseen the neutralization of what is called “tremor”, i.e. the trembling of the human hand, eliminating the possibility of error.

The advantages of the minimally invasive approach compared to open surgeries

• Reduced hospitalization time
• Eliminate complications
• Reduced blood loss
• Faster restoration of bowel function
• Less overall morbidity

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