Laparoscopic cholecystectomy in obese patients compared with nonobese patients.

Obese patients treated by laparoscopic cholecystectomy currently appear to be the largest risk subgroup amenable to consistent scientific evaluation. Here we report our experience and compare the results in obese patients with those obtained in nonobese patients undergoing the laparoscopic procedure. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy in obese patients was technically more difficult with significantly longer operating time (p < 0.01), but intraoperative and postoperative technical complications were not significant in the groups analyzed. Obese patients present significant anesthesiological complications (p < or = 0.001). The results of this experience and the literature review indicate that the therapeutic advantages proved in nonobese patients can be extended to the obese population.