This procedure is performed as a day case under general anaesthetic. It involves the insertion of 2 ports through your abdominal wall, one to look through and the other to be able to move things around to view all of the organs. You will be sore where the small cuts in the abdomen were made for up to 5 days. Most women will require a few days to a week off work to recover.
Occasionally you might stay in hospital overnight if you have trouble with nausea or pain control.
The sutures I use are dissolvable. They take about 10 days to go away completely. They do not need to be removed in normal circumstances. Occasionally one of your wounds might become infected. The most common one is in the umbilicus and that is because it is an area which is difficult for both you and I to clean so bacteria might be present despite our best attempts. Often it may be a bit red or there may be a clear brownish fluid leaking from it. This is all normal and represents bruising only. If you feel well and have no temperature and everything else is normal it is okay to watch and wait. If you have concerns regarding your wound though, feel free to come back and see me to get it checked out. I suggest removing your dressings on day 5 after your surgery. It is easier to remove them when they are wet for example after a shower.
Risks of surgery include infection, bleeding and injury to an organ for example your bowel, your bladder, the tube that connects the kidney to the bladder (ureter) or a blood vessel. Any injury identified at the time of surgery will be repaired at that time and this information discussed with you after you wake up. It is possible for an injury to go unrecognised though and for this reason if you believe your recovery is not normal or your feel unwell other than pain described above it is important for you to come back for early review.
Postoperative review – As the procedure occurs as a day case and quite often you will be too sleepy to remember what I said in recovery before you go home, I suggest you make an appointment to come back and see me 1 week after surgery. This will give us an opportunity to go over the findings, review any photos I have taken, review your wounds and make a plan for what should happen next.