Introduction: Laparoscopic adrenalectomy is more widely recognized as a valuable treatment method for benign and malignant tumors. This study reviews over 20-year experience with laparoscopic adrenalectomy in children in Central-West Poland.
Materials and Methods: During last 21 years 5041 laparoscopic procedures were performed, among them 39 adrenalectomies in children aged from 2 days to 17 years. The following data were analysed: patient's age at diagnosis and surgery, lesion volume in CT/MRI examination, duration of surgery, the incidence of complication after surgery, and length of hospitalization.
Results: The volume of adrenal lesion visualized by CT or MR before surgery varied from 0,5 cm^3 up to 490 cm^3, with a median of 14 cm^3. 80% of adrenalectomies allowed radical removal of the lesion and 92% procedures were performed without any complications. From all data analyzed, only age, both at diagnosis and at surgery was significantly lower in patients with a malignant lesion.
Conclusion: Laparoscopic adrenalectomy is a valuable method to use in paediatric patients for both benign and malignant adrenal lesions. However, in patients with malignant adrenal lesions it may be expected that the procedure will be more difficult due to the lower age and larger lesion size.