What is the recovery time from a laparoscopic (lap) surgery?

From the Guidelines

Recovery time from a laparoscopic surgery typically ranges from 1-3 weeks, with most patients returning to normal daily activities within 1 week and resuming full activities, including exercise, within 2-3 weeks. This is based on the most recent and highest quality study available, which compared laparoscopic appendectomy (LA) to open appendectomy (OA) and found that LA leads to less postoperative pain, shorter length of stay, and earlier return to work and physical activity 1. The study also found that LA lowers overall hospital and social costs, improves cosmesis, and significantly decreases postoperative complications, particularly surgical site infections (SSI).

Key Points to Consider

• Pain management is crucial during the recovery period, and over-the-counter medications like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) are usually sufficient, although stronger pain medication may be prescribed for the first few days 1.
• It is essential to keep the incision sites clean and dry and watch for signs of infection, such as increased redness, swelling, warmth, or drainage.
• Patients can typically shower 24 hours after surgery but should avoid baths until the incisions are fully healed.
• Gradually increasing activity as tolerated is recommended, starting with light walking, and most patients can drive once they are no longer taking narcotic pain medications and can comfortably turn and twist to check blind spots.

Comparison to Open Surgery

• Laparoscopic surgery has been shown to have significant benefits over open surgery, including less tissue trauma and faster healing time, resulting in a quicker recovery 1.
• The Laparoscopy and/or Fast-track Multimodal Management Versus Standard Care (LAFA) study found that laparoscopic resection resulted in a 2-day shorter hospital stay compared to open resection 1.

Postoperative Care

• Recent publications have shown that the duration of pain after laparoscopic surgery requiring major analgesics is much shorter than for open surgery, allowing for discharge from hospital as soon as 23 hours after surgery 1.
• Multimodal analgesia, including oral pain medication and regional blocks, can be effective in managing postoperative pain, and spinal analgesia or transversus abdominis plane (TAP) blocks may be considered as alternatives to traditional epidural analgesia 1.

From the Research

Recovery Time from Laparoscopic Surgery

The recovery time from laparoscopic surgery can vary depending on the type of surgery and individual factors.

• Hospital length of stay (LOS) for laparoscopic surgery can range from 1.33 days for Lap-Band surgery to 7 days for laparoscopic colorectal resection 2, 3.
• Return to normal activity can take anywhere from 7.24 days for Lap-Band patients to 18.16 days for laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass patients 2.
• Days to recovery can range from 15.81 days for Lap-Band patients to 29.05 days for open Roux-en-Y gastric bypass patients 2.
• A study on laparoscopic colorectal surgery found that patients can return to their usual activities within a week after discharge from the hospital and less than 2 weeks from surgery 3.
• Another study on living donor laparoscopic nephrectomy found that 35% of donors returned to normal activities by 2 weeks post-donation, while 79% returned by 4 weeks post-donation 4.

Factors Affecting Recovery Time

Several factors can affect recovery time, including:

• Surgical technique: Laparoscopic surgery is believed to reduce recovery time and patient discomfort compared to open surgery 2.
• Duration of surgery: The duration of surgery did not significantly influence the postoperative period before recovery 5.
• Blood loss level: The level of blood loss did not significantly influence the postoperative period before recovery 5.
• Individual factors: Factors such as sensitivity to pain, character, and living environment can affect recovery time 5.
• Postoperative complications: Donors who experienced postoperative complications reported significantly longer return to work times 4.

Return to Work

The time it takes to return to work after laparoscopic surgery can vary depending on the type of surgery and individual factors.

• A study on living donor laparoscopic nephrectomy found that the mean time to return to work was 5.3 weeks, with 14% of donors returning to work in 1-2 weeks and 76% returning by 5-6 weeks 4.
• Another study on laparoscopic surgery found that patients can return to their usual activities within a week after discharge from the hospital and less than 2 weeks from surgery, which may include returning to work 3.