LAPAROSCOPIC RESECTION OF A GIANT MESENTERIC CYST

Laparoscopic resection of a giant retroperitoneal, mesenteric cyst in a 38-year-old man who presented with abdominal distension and pedal ed ema is described. The diagnosis was made by abdominal computed tomogra phy, which revealed a large cystic mass that was causing extrinsic com pression of the inferior vena cava and the right ureter. The hospital course was uneventful, and the patient was discharged 2 days postopera tively. This new endoscopic approach offers a useful alternative to th e traditional transabdominal excision of a mesenteric cyst and may hav e some theoretical advantages, including less postoperative pain and s horter convalescence.