Cholecystectomy, open

The preferred access is an upper transverse incision. Whenever needed the incision may be extended to the left as far as necessary. Before laparoscopic cholecystectomy became the gold standard, the recommended access was the right oblique subcostal (Kocher) incision (se figure above).

Following the skin incision, sharply take down the subcutaneous tissue to the anterior lamina of the rectus sheath. Open up the fascia and transversely transect the rectus abdominis by electrocautery. Bluntly running a Kocher guide probe under the rectus abdominis helps prevent thermal injuries to the posterior structures. Transect the external and internal oblique muscles and the transversus abdominis at the lateral part of the incision. Carefully open up the exposed posterior rectus sheath/transverse fascia together with the peritoneum, sparing the intraabdominal structures.

Note:

Pararectal incisions are obsolete.

The length of the incision depends on the patient’s individual situation.

Never transect along the costal arch because this will not leave enough tissue for proper wound closure.

In case of a markedly enlarged liver make the incision markedly more inferior.

After exploring the abdomen, particularly the hepatocystic (Calot) triangle, take down any adhesions of the gallbladder, mostly with the transverse colon and duodenum.

Now put traction on the gallbladder with the organ holding forceps. In case of a tense gallbladder, initial needle aspiration may be indicated. With standard scissors, scalpel, electrocautery or bipolar scissors incise the serosa at the fundus close to the liver. From experience electrocautery is the modality of choice here because it substantially reduces any tendency for bleeding (in antegrade resection the blood supply of the gallbladder is intact until the arterial blood supply is finally obstructed by ligation of the cystic artery) Gently increased traction on the gallbladder will expose the almost avascular plane between the gallbladder and liver. Keeping up this traction while transecting the serosa will mobilize the gallbladder from the liver bed. Care should be taken not to injure small accessory bile ducts, which sometimes course directly from the liver to the gallbladder and must be ligated separately.

Note: Open gallbladder surgery today prefers antegrade cholecystectomy, i.e., dissecting from the fundus toward the hepatic pedicle. The reason for this is that in unclear anatomy with initially unidentifiable structures in Calot’s triangle, this type of exposure offers safety if the dissection strictly adheres to the wall of the gallbladder. Drawback: More pronounced bleeding tendency, since the artery has not been ligated yet.

Expose the artery in Calot’s triangle (bile duct – inferior liver aspect – gallbladder neck). Transect the artery between Overholt forceps. Simple ligature with absorbable material, e.g., Vicryl 3/0.

Note: Usually, the cystic artery originates from the right branch of the hepatic artery proper. Since there are any number of anatomical variants, iatrogenic ligation of the right branch is possible. For this reason, the cystic artery must always be identified directly at the gallbladder, and in case of doubt followed medially until the anatomy has become evident.