Minimally Invasive Surgery of the Liver

This book intends to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date description of the newest techniques in minimally invasive liver surgery. The treatment of liver diseases comprises a significant component of the practice of any general surgeon working either in the academic, general and community hospitals. With the rapid expansion of knowledge and technology also the liver has been approached laparoscopically in a few specialized centers with well recognized advantages for the patients. Now this large amount of experience will be made universally available through this book. After a concise description of the main tools and technology necessary to carry out a safe laparoscopic and/or robot-assisted liver surgery, details of operative techniques will be illustrated. Each chapter will consist of an introduction, a summary of the indications and contraindications of specific operative procedures and a detailed description of each surgical procedure, including the potential complications of both the surgery and the postoperative care. A special effort will be done to provide informative and accurate illustrations and pictures, that will be completed by the DVD containing the movies illustrating the technical procedures performed by the leading European liver surgeons.