title: New approaches in laparoscopically assisted radical vaginal hysterectomy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To illuminate our new approaches in laparoscopically assisted radical vaginal hysterectomy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-four women underwent laparoscopically assisted radical vaginal hysterectomies during the period from March 1994 to May 1995 in our institute. Indications for this surgery, including cervical carcinoma stage 1A to 2A, were the same as for abdominal radical hysterectomy. The procedure was performed under general endotracheal anesthesia through means of the technique of videolaparoscopy. Two new approaches were recruited in these procedures including using middle upper abdomen as the primary trocar site and using ureteral stent or illuminator as a ureter marker.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All of these patients completed the procedures without exception. The mean hospital stay was 8.2 +/- 3.2 days. The average blood loss was 540 +/- 210 ml with a range from 100 to 1800 ml. Operating time was from 220 to 420 minutes with a mean time of 325 minutes. In all cases pelvic lymphadenectomy was performed without exception, yielding an average of 13.2 macroscopic nodes. Two of them metastatic lymph nodes were noted. No ureteral injury occurred after using the ureteral stent as a marker.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In this preliminary result, using middle upper abdomen as the primary trocar site could provide the surgeon with a wider and familiar visual angle, thus making the pelvic or para-aortic lymphadenectomy much easier. Moreover, using the ureteral illuminator as a marker during unroofing the ureter laparoscopically is helpful to prevent the ureteral injury and facilitating the procedures in laparoscopically radical hysterectomy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung Medical School, Linkou Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: K G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: H Y
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Y M
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.forename: Y K
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Soon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007045:Hysterectomy, Vaginal / Q000379:methods*; D010535:Laparoscopy / Q000379:methods*; D007902:Length of Stay; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008875:Middle Aged; D015607:Stents; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery