Abstract
Pre- and post- operative changes of patients undergoing either an open cholecystectomy or a laparoscopic cholecystectomy under general or general plus epidural anesthesia at Koga hospital 21 were evaluated by determination of salivary amylase levels on the day of the operation and on the first postoperative day. The laparoscopic group (13 cases: seven males, six females; eight general, five general + epidural anesthesia) displayed lower levels of salivary amylase than the open group (seven cases: four males, three females; three general, four general + epidural anesthesia). Postoperative amylase level of the laparoscopic group decreased from 74.8 KU/L to 69.5 KU/L. The amylase level in the open group was elevated from 119.7 KU/L to 150.1 KU/L. The results indicate that the open cholecystectomy, with the post-, and the pre-operative increase in the amylase levels perhaps being an indicator of an anxiety for the surgery and of the wound pain, respectively.
