Survey: Minimally Invasive Surgery Causes Surgeons Pain

Feb. 7, 2010— -- Four out of five surgeons agree: laparoscopic procedures cause substantial discomfort and pain for the surgeons who perform them.

More than 80 percent of surgeons completing an online questionnaire reported pain or stiffness in the hands, neck, back, or legs after performing minimally invasive surgeries, according to Dr. Adrian Park, of the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore, and colleagues.

For most symptoms, the strongest predictor was high case volume, the researchers reported online in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

Park and colleagues warned of "an impending epidemic" of occupational injuries among clinicians specializing in minimally invasive surgeries, as such procedures become more common.

"Now, especially in the face of an impending shortage of general surgeons in the U.S., the last thing that we as a society can afford is surgical careers shortened by occupationally related symptoms and conditions," they asserted.

The researchers recommended more research into the ergonomics of laparoscopic surgery, as well as better implementation of existing guidelines meant to reduce injuries associated with the awkward postures and long surgical times often required with these procedures.

"That research must more clearly and emphatically define the ergonomic impact of minimally invasive surgery on the practicing surgeon (then set about improving it) is now all too painfully clear," Park and colleagues concluded.

The researchers invited some 2,000 board-certified members of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (of which Park is currently secretary) to complete the online survey.

The response rate was 14.4 percent, with 317 surgeons identified as actively and regularly involved in laparoscopic practices participating.

Of these, 272 reported experiencing physical symptoms or discomfort that they believed were the result of performing minimally invasive procedures.