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If the term “pediatric laparoscopy” appeared
in a children’s dictionary, those words
would best define the advanced surgical procedure.
In fact, Monmouth Medical Center pediatric
surgeon Saad A. Saad, M.D., finds that explaining
surgery to children in a way they can understand
has become easier since smaller, more “kid-friendly” instruments
have entered the operating room.
As a result, children are happy to hear
that the incision will usually be no more
than 1/16th of an inch long, and that they
can expect to return to being just kids in
no time.
“Monmouth is equipped with the sophisticated
instrumentation needed to perform laparoscopic
surgery on children ranging in age from one
week to 17 years old, and weighing as little
as four pounds,” says Dr. Saad, who
has served as chief of Pediatric Surgery
at Monmouth for 13 years and is one of only
seven surgeons in New Jersey board certified
in both general surgery and pediatric surgery.
The hundreds of minimally invasive procedures
that have been performed at Monmouth during
the past several years run the gamut — from
common appendectomies and hernia repairs
(see story below) to the more complex procedures,
including treatment of pyloric stenosis — narrowing
of the opening between the stomach and intestine — and
Hirschsprung’s disease, a severe congenital
condition of the colon that appears soon
after birth.
Repair of the weakness between the food
pipe and the stomach (fundoplication) and
the insertion of feeding tubes into the stomach
(gastrostomy) also are performed through
the small-incision surgery.
“With minimally invasive techniques,
we can perform very complicated procedures
with very few exceptions,” says Dr.
Saad. “Nothing makes me happier than
to see smiles return to the faces of my young
patients. That’s the most-rewarding
part of this profession.”
For more information on pediatric laparoscopic
surgery, call Monmouth Medical Center at
732-870-5500.
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