Open distal pancreatectomy is the gold standard in the surgical treatment of pancreatic body and tail disease. The open abdominal approach could lead to increased postoperative morbidity due to the greater surgical trauma compared with minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy, which affects both the patient and the healthcare system. A systematic review demonstrated reduced postoperative morbidity after laparoscopic versus open abdominal approaches across the field of abdominal surgery.
The minimally invasive approach, with its less invasiveness, promises to reduce postoperative pain and subsequently improve patient mobilization and reduce respiratory complications, leading to faster recovery and shorter hospital stays. Therefore, in the presence of the same postoperative morbidity, the minimally invasive approach should be offered to patients as the first choice.
