Evaluation of Surgical Stress after Laparoscopic and Open Cholecystectonry. Measurements of Interleukine-6 and C-Reactive Protein.

The advantages of laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) over open cholecystectomy (OC) seem to be related to the lesser surgical trauma. The objective of our study was to determine whether or not cholecystectomy leads to the release of interleukin (IL) -6 and C-reactive protein (CRP), and to compare the parameters in patients treated with LC and with OC. We compared the levels of IL-6 and CRP in LC patients (n=10) with those in OC patients (n=10). The level of IL-6 in OC was significantly higher than that in LC after operation. The level of CRP in OC was significantly higher than that in LC after operation. There was a correlation between the operation time and CRP level at 36 hours postoperatively in LC. LC is less stressful than OC in terms of the acute phase inflammatory response. Even in laparoscopic surgery, however, prolonged operation seems to increase the surgical stress.