Patients' quality of life after laparoscopic or open cholecystectomy.
OBJECTIVE
This study was aimed at evaluating and comparing the quality of life in patients who underwent laparoscopic and open cholecystectomy for chronic cholecystolithiasis.


METHODS
The study included 25 patients with laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC group) and 26 with open cholecystectomy (OC group). The quality of life was measured with the Gastrointestinal Quality of Life Index (GLQI) preoperatively, thereafter regularly at 2, 5, 10 and 16 weeks after the operation.


RESULTS
The mean preoperative overall GLQI scores were 112.5 and 110.3 in LC and OC group respectively (P>0.05). In the LC group, the mean overall GLQI score reduced slightly to 110.0 two weeks after the operation (P>0.05). The LC group showed significant improvement in overall score and in the aspects of symptomatology, emotional and physiological status from 5 to 16 weeks postoperatively. In the OC group, the GLQI score reduced to 102.0 two weeks after surgery (P<0.05). Significant reductions were shown in the aspects of symptomatology, physiological and social status. The GLQI scores returned to the preoperative level of 115.6 ten weeks after the operation (P>0.05). The patients experienced significant improvements of GLQI sixteen weeks after OC operation (P<0.01~0.05). Within the 10 postoperative weeks, the LC group had significantly higher GLQI scores than the OC group (P<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
LC can improve the quality of life postoperatively better and more rapidly than OC. The assessment of quality of life assessment is a valid method for measuring the effects of surgical treatment.
Department of Surgery, Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China. chenli@mail.hz.zj.cn
Li
L
Chen
Si-feng
SF
Tao
Yuan
Y
Xu
Fu
F
Fang
Shu-you
SY
Peng
D000328:Adult; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D002763:Cholecystectomy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D041761:Cholecystolithiasis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000601:surgery*; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D010535:Laparoscopy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000453:epidemiology; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D017562:Postcholecystectomy Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D011788:Quality of Life; D016896:Treatment Outcome