The intravenous catheter at McBurney's point

The manipulation of the inflamed appendix during laparoscopic surgery and a voiding its disintegration or leakage can be challenging even to experts. A suture loop form through an intravenous catheter may offer the least traum atic handling of the appendix, and it serves the extra benefit of leaving n o scar. Furthermore, multiple loops can be formed conveniently and economic ally by a single long suture material. It can also ensure snaring at the ve ry base of the appendix. We attempted this technique in 15 patients with 14 successful operations; there was great patient satisfaction and there were no surgical complications. Difficulty was encountered only when the surgeo n tried to loop the buried appendix tip that cannot be delivered by one-han d manipulation.