Physicians at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore have completed the first purely endoscopic appendectomy in the nation, the hospital said May 16.
Sergey Kantsevoy, MD, director of Mercy's Center for Therapeutic Endoscopy, completed the procedure with colleagues at Mercy's Posner Institute for Digestive Health and Liver Disease using a double-balloon endoluminal interventional platform by DiLumen.
Traditional surgical or laparoscopic appendectomy requires abdominal wall incisions or punctures. Purely endoscopic appendectomy using the DiLumen platform doesn't need laparoscopic assistance and advancement of the endoscope into the peritoneal cavity.
The less invasive method of the purely endoscopic appendectomy can eliminate pain, the need for hospital admission and allow the patient to return to work faster, according to a news release from the hospital.