Surgical endoscopy
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It is postulated that laparoscopic cholecystectomy as "patient-friendly surgery" leads to more comfort and in particular to less pain. A prospective study on pain was performed on all patients undergoing the operation over the period of 1 year (n = 382) out of a series of more than 1,000 patients who have undergone the operation in our clinic. Pain was measured by a 100-point visual analogue scale (VAS), by a five-point verbal rating scale, and by the consumption of analgesics. ⋯ The most severe pain was localized to the abdominal wall wounds by 157 (41.1%) and to the right upper abdomen by 138 patients (36.1%) on the first postoperative day. Patients who needed opioids and/or had a pain level of > 50 VAS points (n = 138) had higher preoperative pain levels (P = 0.018) and preoperatively complained more frequently about nausea, vomiting, bloating, and a feeling of abdominal pressure (P = 0.003-0.031). However, predictive values of these variables were too small to be of clinical benefit.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)