Ray Garry

The generic advantages of avoiding a large laparotomy incision are now well established. For the patient, a laparoscopic procedure is invariably less painful, and recovery and return to full normal activities is more rapid. There are also significant gains in short-term quality of life measures associated with the laparoscopic approach. For the surgeon, improved visualisation offers the opportunity of more precise and accurate surgery. These advantages are usually offset by longer operating times, the use of complex and expensive equipment, and the possibility of new types of complications and increased risk of standard operative morbidity. The aim of this chapter is to identify areas of general technique in which the risks associated with laparoscopic surgery can be minimised while retaining all the advantages of the approach. This is being achieved partly by improved and simplified instrumentation, partly by refinement in techniques, and partly by an increasing awareness of the po...

To determine the efficacy, safety, and cost of laparoscopic surgery compared with laparotomy in women with ovarian tumors assumed to be benign. This study is a systematic review. We searched (MEDLINE, EMBASE, LILACS, and COCHRANE LIBRARY) trials registers and reference lists of published trial reports. Six randomized controlled trials were identified involving 324 patients. Duration of surgery, adverse effects of surgery, pain, length of hospital stay, and economic outcomes were compared. The mean duration of surgery was longer in the laparoscopy group overall (weighted mean difference 11.39, 95% CI 0.57–22.22). The pooled estimate for febrile morbidity decreased for laparoscopy (Peto OR 0.34, 95% CI 0.13–0.88). The odds of any adverse effect were decreased after laparoscopic procedures (Peto OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.12–0.55). The odds of being pain free were significantly greater for the laparoscopy group (Peto OR 7.35, 95% CI 4.3–12.56). Mean length of hospital stay was shorter in the la...

With the advent of endometrial ablation and resection, and the laparoscopic techniques for hysterectomy, there has been renewed interest in subtotal or partial hysterectomy. A number of unsubstantiated claims have been made for these new techniques and these are critically reviewed. There appears to be no reason to advocate a change from total hysterectomy to partial hysterectomy on the basis of the currently available evidence.

The optimum method for the treatment of endometriosis remains unclear. This review explores recent data concerning the effectiveness of laparoscopic excision and associated therapies, to guide clinicians in their selection of the most appropriate therapeutic regimen. Large, long-term, prospective studies and a placebo-controlled, randomized, controlled trial suggest that laparoscopic excision is an effective treatment approach for patients with all stages of endometriosis. The result of such laparoscopic excision may be improved if affected bowel, bladder and other involved structures are also excised. Adjuvant therapies such as the levonorgestrel intrauterine system and pre-sacral neurectomy may further improve outcomes. Ovarian endometrioma are invaginations of the uterine cortex, and surgical stripping of this cortex removes many primordial follicles. Despite this apparent disadvantage, stripping of the capsule is associated with better subsequent pregnancy rates and lower recurrence rates than the more conservative approach of thermal ablation to the superficial cortex. Laparoscopic excision is currently the 'gold standard' approach for the management of endometriosis, and results may be improved with careful use of appropriate techniques and suitable adjuvant therapies.

... Additional Information. How to Cite. Bancroft, K., Whittaker, MD, Clayton, RD and Garry, R. (1999), The availability of training in the laparoscopic management of ectopic pregnancy. Gynaecological Endoscopy, 8: 85–87. ... WM, Van der Veen F, Hamerlynck JVTH, Lammes FB. ...

There have been more than 1000 endometrial laser ablations (ELA) performed at South Cleveland Hospital. The procedure has a high success rate in relieving the symptoms of dysfunctional uterine bleeding (83% sustained improvement over 1-4 years), and there has been no associated major morbidity. To identify factors that are associated with poor outcome, we have reviewed our data on women who progressed to hysterectomy after ELA. Twenty-nine of the first 524 women (5.5%) undergoing ELA have required subsequent hysterectomy. After excluding 3 cases where extensive endometriosis had been diagnosed at concomitant laparoscopy, these women were compared to 26 matched controls who had excellent outcomes. It was observed that young age, dysmenorrhea, and atypical pelvic pain at admission were factors associated with an increased chance of failure. Operative data, including uterine length and treatment times, were similar in both groups, and more than half the poor outcome group had entirely normal uteri. We conclude that good patient selection based on careful history and preoperative examination is of paramount importance in ensuring good treatment outcome.

MODIFICATIONS OF THE CLOSED TECHNIQUE How much gas is required for initial insufflation at ... Graham Phillips,1 Ray Garry,1 Chandra Kumar1 and Harry Reich2 ... 1 South Cleveland Hospital, Middlesbrough, Cleveland TS4 3BW, UK 2 Columbia Presbyterian Medical ...

... Subscribe / Renew. A prospective randomized open study comparing goserelin (Zoladex) plus surgery and surgery alone in the management of ovarian endometriomas. Robert Shaw,; Ray Garry,; Lindsay McMillan,; Christopher Sutton,; Simon Wood,; Robert Harrison,; Rajiv Das ...

Heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) is a significant health problem in premenopausal women; it can reduce their quality of life and cause anaemia. First-line therapy has traditionally been medical therapy but this is frequently ineffective. On the other hand, hysterectomy is obviously 100% effective in stopping bleeding but is more costly and can cause severe complications. Endometrial ablation is less invasive and preserves the uterus, although long-term studies have found that the costs of ablative surgery approach the cost of hysterectomy due to the requirement for repeat procedures. A large number of techniques have been developed to 'ablate' (remove) the lining of the endometrium. The gold standard techniques (laser, transcervical resection of the endometrium and rollerball) require visualisation of the uterus with a hysteroscope and, although safe, require skilled surgeons. A number of newer techniques have recently been developed, most of which are less time consuming. However, hysteroscopy may still be required as part of the ablative techniques and some of them must be considered to be still under development, requiring refinement and investigation. To compare the efficacy, safety and acceptability of methods used to destroy the endometrium to reduce HMB in premenopausal women. We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycInfo, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials and the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group Specialised Register of controlled trials (from inception to August 2009). We also searched trial registers and other sources of unpublished or grey literature, reference lists of retrieved studies, experts in the field and made contact with pharmaceutical companies that manufactured ablation devices. Randomised controlled trials comparing different endometrial ablation techniques in women with a complaint of heavy menstrual bleeding without uterine pathology. The outcomes included reduction of heavy menstrual bleeding, improvement in quality of life, operative outcomes, satisfaction with the outcome, complications and need for further surgery or hysterectomy. The two review authors independently selected trials for inclusion, assessed trials for quality and extracted data. Attempts were made to contact authors for clarification of data in some trials. Adverse events were only assessed if they were separately measured in the included trials. In the comparison of the newer 'blind' techniques (second generation) with the gold standard hysteroscopic ablative techniques (first generation), there was no evidence of overall differences in the improvement in HMB or patient satisfaction.Surgery was an average of 15 minutes shorter (weighted mean difference (WMD) 14.9, 95% CI 10.1 to 19.7), local anaesthesia was more likely to be employed (odds ratio (OR) 6.4, 95% CI 3.0 to 13.7) and equipment failure was more likely (OR 4.6, 95% CI 1.5 to 14.0) with second-generation ablation. Women undergoing newer ablative procedures were less likely to have fluid overload, uterine perforation, cervical lacerations and hematometra than women undergoing the more traditional type of ablation and resection techniques (OR 0.17, 95% CI 0.04 to 0.77; OR 0.32, 95% CI 0.1 to 1.0; OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.6 and OR 0.31, 95% CI 0.11 to 0.85, respectively). However, women were more likely to have nausea and vomiting and uterine cramping (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.6 to 3.9 and OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.1 to 2.8, respectively). Endometrial ablation techniques offer a less invasive surgical alternative to hysterectomy. The rapid development of a number of new methods of endometrial destruction has made systematic comparisons between methods and with the 'gold standard' first generation techniques difficult. Most of the newer techniques are technically easier than hysteroscopy-based methods to perform but technical difficulties with new equipment need to be ironed out. Overall, the existing evidence suggests that success rates and complication profiles of newer techniques of ablation compare favourably with hysteroscopic techniques.