Laparoscopic autopsy is accurate and easy to perform. It is highly sensitive for intra-abdominal abnormalities, especially in trauma victims. Laparoscopic autopsy is minimally invasive and not disfiguring, rendering it easier to accept among mourning families. It should be strongly considered when consent for a conventional autopsy is lacking.

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Thoracoscopic autopsy is accurate and easy to perform. It is highly sensitive, especially in deaths due to trauma and following thoracic surgery. Thoracoscopic autopsy is an important tool that allows the diagnosis of major chest abnormalities as well as ruling out postoperative catastrophe, information that is invaluable for the surgeon, as well as all the medical staff and families. Thoracoscopic postmortem examination should be offered to mourning families as a cosmetic and reliable option when informed consent for conventional autopsy is lacking.

Balloon axilloscopy was easy to perform, provided the surgeon with constant visualization of vital anatomical structures, and allowed easy separation and dissection of the axillary lymph nodes and the first rib. As a technical aid prior to a conventional axillary dissection, or as part of a pure endoscopic procedure in the axilla, balloon axilloscopy is 100% reliable in identifying the long thoracic nerve and moving it out of the way, separating the lymph nodes from it and from the intercostobrachial nerve and axillary vein and artery, rendering the whole dissection process safer for both the surgeon and the patient.

The central issue in elderly surgery remains the operative risk, which is usually a direct factor of age, ASA classification, and other pathologies, especially cardiovascular diseases. It is the surgeon's role to define properly the risks involved with a patient and to anticipate the involved operative mortality. Based on this, we performed CO2 laser fulguration of anal canal tumors in 10 patients suffering from either squamous cell or adenocarcinoma localized up to 4 cm from the anus. The rationale was to avoid prohibitive operative and anesthetic risk, achieve local control of disease and improve quality of life by avoiding surgical convalescence and an otherwise certain colostomy. All patients underwent fulguration (25-30 W) every 3-4 months. Complications included minor pain and bleeding. Three patients required operation (Hartman's pouch) within 2 1/2 years due to continuous tumor bleeding and stricture of the anal canal. The remaining 7 patients were treated regularly and satisfactorily by fulguration and the mean survival in this group was 8 years (in all cases the causes of death were unrelated to the procedure or the tumor). We conclude that CO2 laser fulguration of anal canal tumors in elderly, high-risk patients represents an invaluable option of treatment, while avoiding major operative risk, controlling the local spread of disease, maintaining physiological bowel function, and avoiding colostomy. Most importantly, the main dividends of the study are patient satisfaction and maintenance of good quality of life.