Surgeons on the medical staff at Houston Northwest Medical Center, use an advanced form of laparoscopic surgery when they surgically repairs inguinal hernias at Houston Northwest Medical Center. According to Covidien, the manufacture of the SILS™ Port Multiple Instrument Access Port, Houston Northwest Medical Center is the first hospital in Houston to use SILS™ to surgically repair inguinal hernias. This new technique, which is called single-incision laparoscopic surgery (SILS^™), allows surgeons to make one half-inch cut through which to perform a surgical procedure. The incision is hidden in the belly button, making the procedure virtually scarless. An access port is placed within this surgical entryway to hold the specially designed cameras and instruments used during the minimally invasive procedure.

According to the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons, approximately 600,000 hernia repair operations are performed annually in the United States. Many are performed by the conventional “open” method. However, laparoscopic surgery is considered a medical advantage over open procedures that result in longer scars, more substantial post-surgical pain, and longer hospital stays.

Traditional laparoscopic surgery also requires multiple incisions (usually three to four) to allow for optimal placement of instruments. Although scarring is much smaller in laparoscopic surgery versus open surgery, the three to four puncture sites in traditional laparoscopic surgery each provide the potential for infection, pain and hernia formation.

“Single-incision surgery requires special training for proper use of the instrumentation and the camera,” says Dr. Khoa T. Matthew Nguyen, general surgeon on the medical staff at Houston Northwest Medical Center, who has been trained in the SILS technique. “This surgical method can have promising results for people who are candidates for minimally invasive surgery.”

While laparoscopy traditionally offers better patient outcomes, including less pain and improved cosmetic result, the use of a single incision has the potential to dramatically extend the benefits of laparoscopy. The procedure can reduce wound pain that may accompany multiple sites of entry, and patients report less scarring – and in some cases, no visible scar. 

Currently SILS is most commonly used for gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy). Surgeons insert specialized tools that have been developed for single-incision surgery through the half-inch belly button incision. These tools include a camera and flexible instruments to cut and suture, thus allowing the surgeon a precise and versatile range of motion within the abdomen.