Injuries to major vessels in the course of laparoscopic surgery are ra
re but serious, life-threatening complications. We report nine iatroge
nic vascular injuries during minimally invasive surgery that occurred
between January 1991 and December 1995 in surgical and obstetric-gynec
ologic services in the Austrian province of Styria. The total vascular
complication rate is 0.08%. As these data show, the distal abdominal
aorta and vena cava, as well as the large pelvic vessels, are especial
ly susceptible to injury when the Veress needle and trocars are insert
ed into the abdomen. Surgical reconstruction of these eight arterial l
esions required a polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE) patch in one case, and
the resection of the damaged section of the artery and reanastomosis
in two others. The remaining lesions, as well as an isolated vein inju
ry, were corrected with direct suturing of the vessel. Pelvic circulat
ion was completely restored in all patients, and permanent damage was
avoided.