The evaluation of the critically ill patient for intra-abdominal pathology with DL is a practical solution and needs to be used more frequently in this setting. In this paper, we present our experience with diagnostic laparoscopy in the ICU and found it to be safe and, in certain cases, may have a potential role as a bedside therapeutic tool. Although a number of reports with small series of patients have addressed the benefits and feasibility of DL, it is still being underutilized in the ICU. A more aggressive attempt should be made to incorporate DL as a routine procedure in the ICU.
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