We performed 75 consecutive laparoscopic cholecystectomy from July 1991 to October 1993 on the patients with gallstones and/or gallbladder polyps. The patients consisted of 30 males and 45 females between 32 and 88 years old with a mean age of 59.4 years. In 72 of these 75 patients (96.0%) laparoscopic cholecystectomy was successfully completed. In the remaining 3 cases (4.0%) the operation was converted to the open cholecystectomy. All patients were free of major complications. Three patients required conversion to a conventional open cholecystectomy due to fallen gallstones in the peritoneal cavity, dense adhesions surrounding the gallbladder and severe acute cholecystitis. This procedure is advantageous in comparison with the conventional open cholecystectomy, because of less postoperative pain, rapid postoperative recovery and high cosmetic value as well.
Laparoscopic cholecystectomy seems to be a safe and effective treatment for selected patients with benign gallbladder diseases.
