What are adhesions?
Adhesions are bands of scar tissue that form between the organs. Adhesions can result from disease (such as endometriosis), infection (such as pelvic inflammatory disease), and injury (following abdominal surgery) or may have no known cause (idiopathic adhesions). More than 95% of patients who undergo abdominal surgery develop adhesions, although most adhesions are asymptomatic.
What causes adhesions?
Adhesions develop as the body attempts to repair itself. This normal response can occur after surgery, infection, trauma, or radiation. Repaired cells within the body cannot tell the difference between one organ and another. If an organ undergoes repair and comes into contact with another part of itself or another organ, scar tissue may form an adhesion connecting the two surfaces.
What does adhesiolysis mean?
Adhesiolysis is the first step of adhesion surgery, the process of separating structures that have been fused by adhesions. To carefully remove all adhesions and scarring without causing damage to the other structures, advanced laparoscopic surgical skills and extensive knowledge of anatomy are required.
Once all adhesions have been carefully separated, the patient will typically be left with multiple areas of the raw tissue. If these areas are left as they are, adjacent structures may stick to these raw areas resulting in new adhesions. This process typically occurs during the first hours and days following surgery and these newly formed adhesions may then go on to thicken and tighten during the following months. Some people have a greater tendency to form scar tissue and adhesions than others.
Can adhesions be removed laparoscopically?
The process of removing adhesions through a laparoscope is called laparoscopic adhesiolysis. Doctors typically diagnose adhesions during a surgical procedure with laparoscopy.
- If they find adhesions, doctors usually release them during the same surgery using tools threaded through the laparoscopic tube and guided by video images from the scope’s lighted camera.
- This procedure is usually done under general anesthesia.
- The surgeon makes a small incision in the area of adhesion and uses a laparoscope to locate the adhesion.
- The laparoscope will project images onto a screen, and the surgeon cuts out the adhesions.
- The wounds are sutured with skin absorbable stitches.
- Laparoscopic adhesiolysis usually takes less than three hours.
Advantages of laparoscopic adhesiolysis are:
What are the common complications of laparoscopic adhesiolysis?
The surgery is minimally invasive, but there are still possible complications, which include:
- Injury to organs
- Worsening of adhesions
- Hernia (organs pushing out through muscle or tissue walls)
- Infections
- Bleeding
SLIDESHOW
Pelvic Pain: What's Causing Your Pelvic Pain? See SlideshowHow long does it take to recover from laparoscopic adhesiolysis?
The patient may have discomfort around the operated site for about two weeks. They can return to regular activities in two to four weeks. It may also take several weeks for bowel movements to become regular again.
To improve recovery from abdominal adhesiolysis surgery, take the following steps:
Laparoscopic adhesiolysis: (https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1829759-overview)
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Common Medical Abbreviations & Terms
Doctors, pharmacists, and other health-care professionals use abbreviations, acronyms, and other terminology for instructions and information in regard to a patient's health condition, prescription drugs they are to take, or medical procedures that have been ordered. There is no approved this list of common medical abbreviations, acronyms, and terminology used by doctors and other health- care professionals. You can use this list of medical abbreviations and acronyms written by our doctors the next time you can't understand what is on your prescription package, blood test results, or medical procedure orders. Examples include:
- ANED: Alive no evidence of disease. The patient arrived in the ER alive with no evidence of disease.
- ARF: Acute renal (kidney) failure
- cap: Capsule.
- CPAP: Continuous positive airway pressure. A treatment for sleep apnea.
- DJD: Degenerative joint disease. Another term for osteoarthritis.
- DM: Diabetes mellitus. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes
- HA: Headache
- IBD: Inflammatory bowel disease. A name for two disorders of the gastrointestinal (BI) tract, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis
- JT: Joint
- N/V: Nausea or vomiting.
- p.o.: By mouth. From the Latin terminology per os.
- q.i.d.: Four times daily. As in taking a medicine four times daily.
- RA: Rheumatoid arthritis
- SOB: Shortness of breath.
- T: Temperature. Temperature is recorded as part of the physical examination. It is one of the "vital signs."
Endometriosis
Endometriosis implants are most commonly found on the ovaries, the Fallopian tubes, the outer surfaces of the uterus or intestines, and on the surface lining of the pelvic cavity. They also can be found in the vagina, cervix, and bladder.
What Is Endometriosis?
What is endometriosis? Endometriosis is an abnormal growth of endometrial cells found in the uterus. Not to be confused with endometrial cancer, endometriosis has different symptoms and treatments, including surgery.
Endometriosis Quiz
Endometriosis is a common gynecological condition. Take this quiz to learn what happens when a woman has endometriosis as well as causes, treatments, and risks.
What Are Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) Symptoms?
Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), also known by the name Stein-Leventhal syndrome, is a hormonal problem that causes women to have a variety of symptoms including irregular or no menstrual periods, acne, obesity, and excess hair growth. Treatment of PCOS depends partially on the woman's stage of life and the symptoms of PCOS.
Uterine Fibroids (Benign Tumors of the Uterus)
Uterine fibroids are benign (non-cancerous) tumors in the womb (uterus). Most uterine fibroids do not cause symptoms; however, if the fibroid is large enough and in the right location, it may cause symptoms of pelvic pain, abnormal vaginal bleeding, and pressure on the bladder or rectum. Uterine fibroids that remain small and do not grow usually do not need treatment; however, surgery to remove the fibroid may be necessary. Uterine fibroids do not cause cancer; however, there is a rare, fast-growing cancerous called leiomyosarcoma.
Uterine Growths
Benign uterine growths are tissue enlargements of the female womb (uterus). Three types of benign uterine growths are uterine fibroids, adenomyosis, and uterine polyps. Symptoms include abdominal pressure and pain, pelvic pain, pain during intercourse, and pain during bowel movements. Diagnosis and treatment of benign uterine growths depend upon the type of growth.
Vaginal Bleeding
Normal vaginal bleeding (menorrhea) occurs through the process of menstruation. Abnormal vaginal bleeding in women who are ovulating regularly most commonly involves excessive, frequent, irregular, or decreased bleeding. Causes of abnormal may arise from a variety of conditions that may include, uterine fibroids, IUDs, hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, lupus, STDs, pelvic inflammatory disease, emotional stress, anorexia nervosa, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), cancers, early pregnancy.
What Are the Early Signs of Endometriosis?
The endometrium is the inner lining of the uterus, which changes throughout the menstrual cycle, shedding during menstrual periods. Endometriosis is the presence of normal endometrial tissue abnormally implanted in locations other than the inner wall of the uterus. This causes pain and other symptoms that may include infertility.
What Are the Signs of a Blocked Bowel?
What is a blocked bowel, and how do you fix it? Learn the signs, what causes a blockage, how it is diagnosed, and how it is treated.
What Causes an Adhesion?
An adhesion is a band of scar tissue that develops abnormally between two body organs or between an organ and the abdominal wall. Anything that disrupts the healing mechanisms after an injury can cause adhesions. The injury can be a result of surgery, inflammation, infection or radiation.
What Is Laparoscopy Used For?
Laparoscopy is a minimally invasive surgery or keyhole surgery that helps diagnose and treat many health conditions. A laparoscope is a thin, flexible tube with a light and small video camera on the end. The tube is put into a small surgical cut made through the abdominal wall near the belly button.