Laparoscopy

laparoscopy

[‚lap·ə′räs·kə·pē]

(medicine)

A method of visually examining the peritoneal cavity by means of a long slender endoscope equipped with sheath, obturator, biopsy forceps, a sphygmomanometer bulb and tubing, scissors, and a syringe; the endoscope is introduced into the peritoneal cavity through a small incision in the abdominal wall. Also known as peritoneoscopy.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Laparoscopy

 

the diagnostic examination of the abdominal cavity and its organs through a puncture of the abdominal wall with an optical instrument called a laparoscope; first performed in 1901 by the Russian obstetrician-gynecologist D. O. Otto.

The laparoscope consists of a trocar (a stylet with a sheath); an illumination and optical system; and attachments for taking a piece of tissue or organ, still and motion pictures, and X-ray contrasts of the biliary tract. The laparoscopy is performed with local anesthesia under aseptic conditions. The choice of site for the puncture depends on the region or organ being examined. A single puncture allows examination of the organs of the abdominal cavity and peritoneum within limits defined by the length of the optical system.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.