Page 9 - Clinical Manual of Small Animal Endosurgery

Foreword

Endoscopic surgery has been on the forefront of human medicine for the
last 25 years and slowly is penetrating the veterinary market. The obvious
reason for this delay is that the surgeon needs extra skills and investment
to be able to perform endoscopic surgery. Routine visible and tactile
stimuli are missing and one often feels inadequate in the beginning,
delaying the practical use of endoscopic procedures. Additionally, endos-
copy was often regarded as a skill set that only internal medicine special-
ists possessed, not necessarily surgeons or practitioners. Lately, a surge
of interest in the veterinary field has lead to endoscopic surgery being
embraced by specialist surgeons and private practitioners alike.
The advantages of endoscopic surgery are obvious: why perform major
surgery through a big incision if three small puncture wounds can result
in the same success rate? Procedures such as laparoscopic ovariectomy
and thoracoscopic pericardectomy have quickly become the gold stand-
ard in veterinary medicine, leaving the conservative therapies trailing far
behind.
Thus, the question is, why has this excellent new technique not sky-
rocketed (as in human medicine) and changed veterinary medicine
forever? The answer is simple: you need to have experience to be able
to do it safely and a solid base of knowledge so as not to do harm to
the animal. Halstedt’s major principle – above all, do not harm –should
still resonate in every surgeon’s mind. Experience comes by doing a lot
of procedures and practising as much as one can. Knowledge comes from
books such as the one in front of you. Why read it? Because it is written
by veterinary clinicians with a wealth of experience in veterinary endo-
scopic surgery, and it is presented in a way that it will appeal to both
practitioners and specialists. It is practical and explains the procedures
clearly. It answers the questions that most clinicians have and poses
problems with a view to solving them. I personally enjoyed reading this
book, edited by Dr Hotston Moore and Dr Ragni. With its clinical view