ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses complications related to laparoscopic splenectomy and not laparoscopy in general. As surgical procedures, involving the spleen have become more commonplace, two basic categories of splenic disease have emerged. These are splenic diseases that lead to elective surgery and splenic injuries. Splenic diseases, which require elective procedures, include hematologic disorders and malignancies. An accurate determination of the morbidity and mortality rates associated with elective splenic surgery is difficult because of several factors. Furthermore, splenic repair has generally been found to be associated with lower rates of morbidity than those seen with splenectomy with trauma. The complication rate after splenectomy for lymphoproliferative disorders has been reported around 25%. Infectious complications are common after splenectomy for trauma. Most complications reported with splenorrhaphy, such as pneumonia, atelectasis, ileus, and organ space surgical site infections, could be attributed to laparotomy rather than the splenic repair itself.
