Laparoscopic caecal wedge resection with intraoperative endoscopic assistance

Background and Purpose: Cancer is a potential evolution of adenomatous polyps, that is why nowadays screening programs for colorectal cancer are widely diffused. Colonoscopy is the gold standard procedure for identifying and resecting polyps; however, for some polyps resection during colonoscopy is not possible. The aim of the present study is to identify a fast and safe procedure for endoscopically resecting unresectable polyps. Methods: Patients with endoscopically unresectable polyps were scheduled for laparoscopic wedge resection under colonoscopic assistance. Results: From November 2010 to November 2012 we treated 15 patients with endoscopically unresectable adenomatous polyps. All patients underwent a laparoscopic caecal wedge resection with intraoperative endoscopic assistance. All procedures were completed without complications and in all cases complete resection of the polyps was achieved. Conclusions: Laparoscopic wedge caecal resection with intraoperative colonoscopy is a fast and safe procedure that can be performed for large polyps that could not be treated endoscopically.