Is Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Safe in Late Pregnancy ?

Abstract

Gallbladder disease is second to acute appendicitis in pregnancy, which would require surgical intervention. Twelve percent of all pregnancies are complicated by gallstones; 33%-40% fail to resolve by conservative management. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy which was considered to be technically difficult in advanced pregnancy is now the accepted treatment for failed conservative management.We present three cases, successfully managed by laparoscopic surgery in late pregnancy. Bahrain Med Bull 2014; 36(2):117-120CONCLUSION Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is safe in any trimester although second trimester remains the preferred choice for operative intervention. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy reduces morbidity of the mother and the fetus. Surgery in advanced pregnancy requires a team of experienced surgeon, anesthetist and monitoring by the obstetrician.Author contribution: All authors share equal effort contribution towards (1) substantial contributions to conception and design, acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data; (2) drafting the article and revising it critically for important intellectual content; and (3) final approval of the manuscript version to be published. Yes.