Enhancing safety of laparoscopic vascular control for neonatal sacrococcygeal teratoma.

Life-threatening bleeding is a hazard of major tumor excision in children. However, fatalities from inadvertent arterial ligation should not be overlooked. Sacrococcygeal teratoma is the commonest neonatal tumor. Laparotomy to ligate the median sacral artery has been used to preempt potentially fatal resectional bleeding. Use of laparoscopy to achieve the same is an evolving technique, with only 7 neonatal cases described. As such, the Idea, Development, Exploration, Assessment, Long-term study (IDEAL) guidelines on surgical innovation recommend case reports addressing proof of concept, technical factors and safety tips. Fortunately, mistaken arterial division is so far unreported during laparoscopic median sacral artery ligation. However, as uptake widens, anatomical distortion by tumor and surgeon disorientation at endosurgery are risk factors for even such inconceivable complications. We report a successful case of laparoscopic vascular control for neonatal sacrococcygeal teratoma and demonstrate an observation that serves as a useful safety check for this procedure (as well as the open alternative).
(Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)