A traditional laparoscopic surgery involves inflating the abdomen with gas and performing an operation with several long thin instruments and a thin camera tube inserted through four to five separate "ports." Single Port Laparoscopy uses just one port buried in the belly button to accommodate both the instruments and the camera. Benefits to the patient include less post-operative pain, less blood loss, faster recovery time, fewer complications, and better cosmetic results.
Memorial Hermann Health System has a handful of physicians performing single port laparoscopy procedures. Two of these physicians - Jason Balette, MD of Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center and Tung Shu, MD of Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center - recently commented on this breakthrough that could one day lead to no-incision, pain-free surgery.