Minimally Invasive Surgery



	-	Diseases We Treat

	-	First-of-its-kind Pediatric Robotic Surgery a Success

	-	LPCH Pediatric General Surgery in the News

	-	Pediatric General Surgery

	-	Pediatric General Surgery Program at Good Samaritan Hospital

	-	Pediatric Surgery Fellowship

	-	Research and Recognition — The Leading Edge of Surgery for Children

	-	The Pediatric General Surgery Team



	-	General Surgeons



	-	The Child Having Surgery



	-	Getting in the Game Boosts Health of Overweight Children, Stanford/Packard Study Shows

	-	Swallowed magnets attract trouble in boy’s stomach

	-	Formerly conjoined twins leave hospital

Smaller Incisions, Less Pain

Traditionally, surgery required an incision large enough to allow the surgeon to place hands and instruments inside the patient. The Packard Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery is a leader in developing and performing minimally invasive procedures on children.

Dr. Sanjeev Dutta operates using a surgical robot

To perform minimally invasive surgery, the pediatric surgery team uses specially designed, tiny instruments that are inserted into the patient through bandage-sized, small incisions. The surgeon views the magnified surgical area on a computer monitor. The Packard Center also utilizes surgical robotics for select procedures.

Minimally invasive procedures are as effective as open operations, take about the same amount of operating room time, and cost no more. They typically require less hospitalization after surgery, reduce postoperative pain, shorten recovery time and leave smaller, less noticeable scars.

Our surgeons are innovators and experts in providing laparoscopic (abdomen minimally invasive surgeries), thoracoscopic (chest minimally invasive surgeries) and telescope procedures under the skin for children. They also have a strong research program aimed at designing better tools for minimally invasive procedures.

We perform minimally invasive procedures on unborn fetuses, pregnant women, as well as infants and children:

Fetal procedures
- Urinary tract obstruction
- Diaphragmatic hernia
- Complications of twin pregnancies (monochorionic twinning)
- Select heart disorders (in collaboration with the hospital’s Children’s Heart Center)
- EXIT procedure - Ex-utero Interpartum Treatment (EXIT) is performed while the baby is still connected to the placenta to fix airway obstructions.
Pregnant women
- Appendectomy
- Gallbladder removal (cholecystectomy)
- Treatment of pancreatitis
Infants and children
- Hernia in the groin (inguinal) or belly button (umbilical)
- Removal of the:
  - Spleen or gallbladder
  - Thymus (thymectomy)
  - Appendix (appendectomy)
- Nuss repair of sunken (pectus excavatum) or funnel chest (pectus carinatum)
- Hirschsprung’s disease and imperforate anus (also known as anorectal malformation or anal atresia)
- Incomplete formation of the swallowing tube from throat to stomach (esophageal atresia)
- Repair of blockage of the valve connecting stomach to small intestine (pyloric stenosis)
- Cutting and sealing a portion of the sympathetic nerve chain that runs down the backbone (sympathectomy). The procedure permanently interrupts the nerve signal that is causing the body to sweat excessively (hyperhidrosis).
- Removal of part of the lung (lung resection)
- Removal of part of the large intestine (bowel resection)
- Heller myotomy for achalasia
- Fundoplication for pediatric gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- Removal of "lumps and bumps" under the skin using telescopes placed through hidden incisions in the scalp and armpit. Lesions, cysts (dermoids) and lymph nodes on the face and neck are usually removed through incisions placed over the lump, which can leave unsightly scars. The pediatric general surgeons at Packard Children's Hospital have pioneered a safe and effective way of removing many of these lesions without leaving any visible scars. By inserting endoscopes and surgical instruments through tiny incisions on the scalp or armpits, surgeons are able to tunnel under the skin to the lesion and remove it without any visible scar at the site of the lump. The procedure leaves behind tiny, hidden scars that go unnoticed.

Lucile Packard Children's Hospital is located in Palo Alto, adjacent to Stanford University Hospital, approximately 20 miles north of San Jose, CA and 40 miles south of San Francisco.

Lucile Packard Children's Hospital
725 Welch Road
Palo Alto, California 94304
(650) 497-8000