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Abdominal fascial closure after midline laparotomy can be time-consuming and inaccurate and is a common time for needle-stick injuries. The SuturTek 360 degrees Fascial Closure Device (FCD) is designed to provide a secure fascial closure while reducing the risk of needle-stick injury. To date, the accuracy and efficacy of the fascial closure obtained with this device have never been objectively determined. Ten pigs averaging 18 kg were killed and underwent a midline laparotomy. Idealized suture locations were premarked through the fascia. The animals were then randomly assigned to either a traditional suture closure or the FCD for fascial closure. Surgeons were instructed to place sutures through the idealized markers. Surgeons were then evaluated based on the time to close fascia and distance from the markers. Abdominal bursting pressures were obtained using a manometric balloon. Accuracy was also tested on an ex vivo model on which the participants were again asked to place stitches as close as possible to idealized marks, and absolute distance from the idealized location was calculated. The FCD resulted in a faster closure time when compared with traditional closure (5.9 +/- 0.6 vs 7.7 +/- 1.0 minute, P = .012), with a similar accuracy of placement from the idealized markers (1.5 +/- 1.4 mm vs 0.8 +/- 1.1 mm). Bursting pressures were similar between the 2 groups: 470 +/- 71 mm Hg for FCD versus 453 +/- 94 mm Hg for traditional closure ( P = .76). The FCD resulted in a faster fascial closure with similar accuracy and strength when compared with traditional open techniques. The potential reduction in serious needle-stick injuries warrants prospective trials.

Access to the abdominal cavity is required for diagnostic and therapeutic endeavors for a variety of medical and surgical diseases. Historically, abdominal access has required a formal laparotomy to provide adequate exposure. Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) is an emerging experimental alternative to conventional surgery that eliminates abdominal incisions and incision-related complications by combining endoscopic and laparoscopic techniques to diagnose and treat abdominal pathology. During NOTES, commercially available flexible video endoscopes are used to create a controlled transvisceral incision via natural orifice access to enter the peritoneal cavity. Common incision-related complications such as wound infections, incisional hernias, postoperative pain, aesthetic disdain, and adhesions could be minimized or eliminated by NOTES. NOTES has evolved from more than 2 centuries of technological innovations and continued growth in the field of surgical endoscopy. Innovative surgical endoscopists have slowly developed means to surpass the constraints of the gastrointestinal lumen by using a flexible endoscope. The future of surgical endoscopy may be the shared entity of NOTES, which further integrates endoscopy, gastroenterology, and minimally invasive and general surgery. Although the promise of NOTES is electrifying to surgeons and endoscopists, several key issues need to be characterized prior to the incorporation of NOTES into routine practice. This article reviews the status, contemporary body of literature, limitations, and potential future implications accompanying the development of NOTES.