Complications of adrenalectomy

Deeply situated in the retroperitoneum, the adrenal glands are in a complex and dangerous anatomical region because of their vascular relationships and with the neighboring organs. The complications of adrenalectomies are more often related to difficulties of access and exposure than to the glandular exeresis itself. This is reflected in the range of possible complications with overall perioperative complication rates varying between 1.7% and 30.7%. Regardless of the approach chosen (open or laparoscopic, transperitoneal or retroperitoneal), they share the same possible complications: complications related to the topographic anatomy of the adrenal gland that encompass the known complications of open surgery and complications related to the laparoscopic approach. Many of these complications are related to laparoscopic access and are shared with other laparoscopic procedures. Therefore, the rules for preventing complications in laparoscopic surgery also apply to laparoscopic adrenalectomy.