Laparoscopic Adrenalectomy: A Single-Center’s Experience

Abstract

Laparoscopic adrenalectomy (LA) has become the "gold standard" for treating most adrenal lesions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the results of 98 consecutive laparoscopic adrenalectomies performed over 15 years at a single center. Ninety-eight patients who underwent laparoscopic adrenalectomy between 2006 and 2021 at the Izmir Tepecik Training and Research Hospital were included in this retrospective study. Previous abdominal surgery, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score, tumor size and location, surgical procedures, and postoperative results with histologic diagnosis and complications were analyzed from patient archives. The mean age of the patients was 53.38 ±13.55 years. The mean size of the adrenal lesions was 59.1 (range, 23 to 130) mm. Nineteen (19.4%) patients required conversion to open adrenalectomy. The rate of conversion was found to be significantly higher in patients with intraoperative complications (p<0.001) and lesions larger than 8 cm (p=0.032). The mean length of hospital stay was 6.3 (range, 2-32) days. Laparoscopic adrenalectomy is the standard treatment for adrenal lesions. Tumor location, histopathologic type, and the age of the patients should not be considered a contraindication for laparoscopic adrenalectomy. Intraoperative complications and lesions larger than 8 cm are seen as the most important reason for conversion to open adrenalectomy.