Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Solid Organ Surgery in Sarasota FL

David Napoliello, MD can help with the management of most gastrointestinal problems that require surgery. He has extensive experience in all aspects of classic "Open Surgeries"(requiring a large incision) and "Minimally Invasive/Advanced Laparoscopic" techniques. Dr. Napoliello trained for 5 years at Penn State-Geisinger becoming proficient in all standard open surgeries and basic laparoscopy and then spent an entire year completing the Mayo Clinic's Minimally Invasive and Advanced Laparoscopic Fellowship in 1999. He has been at the forefront of Advanced Laparoscopy his entire career and has practiced in Florida and Sarasota County for over 13 years.

The gastrointestinal Tract is from your mouth to your bottom. These organs as well as solid organs of the abdomen that may require surgical management may include the following:

Stomach: Ulcer disease, cancers, strictures, benign tumors, GERD may be indications for surgery

Diaphragm: A Hiatal Hernia is a hole in the diaphragm that allows the stomach to slip through to the chest. Under certain circumstances these need to be repaired.

Duodenum, Small Intestine, Large Intestine: The classic bowels or "gut." Duodenal ulcers, tumor or stricture. Small bowel tumor, diverticulum, stricture, blockage/obstruction. Large bowel(Colon) tumor/cancer/polyp, diverticulitis, rectal prolapse, rectal tumor. Of note, the appendix is attached to beginning of the Colon called the "Cecum."

Gallbladder: An organ that holds on to "extra" bile juice. It can become diseased due to gallstones, infection, poor function(biliary dyskinesia) and very rarely cancer.

Spleen: This organ is about the size of a fist and sits behind the stomach. It helps the immune system by filtering blood and presenting atypical cells to the immune cells that can fight them. These can be associated with tumors, lymphomas and trauma that may warrant removal.

Liver, Bile ducts and Pancreas: Multiple diseases, tumors, bleeding and blockages may warrant biopsies or resections of these respective organs. The patient, disease and extent of operation needed will define the best course of surgical management. A few rare surgeries (e.g.-liver transplant/Portal bypass) would warrant referral to a tertiary or quaternary surgical referral center because the nature of the post op recovery would warrant continuous management not available at most community hospitals.

Adrenal Gland: The adrenal gland is a small organ that sits on top of the kidney. It may be involved with a tumor or disease that requires removal. Laparoscopy is an excellent option for this surgery.

Laparoscopic management is available for most abdominal operations. The individual patient, prior surgeries, extent of disease will define whether this approach would actually be a benefit or detriment to the case. In many instances, such as large tumors and diffuse disease, an open surgery can be faster, safer and more appropriate. Correspondingly, most gallbladder and spleen surgeries I feel are faster and safer with laparoscopy.

Robotic surgery is evolving. The benefits are unique to each individual surgical specialty. The robot's job is to hold laparoscopic instruments some with more degrees of freedom(wrist motion, etc) then standard laparoscopic equipment. Although the benefit for Urologists is not in question, the results for General Surgery continue to be debated. Dr. Napoliello provides robotic surgery on a very limited basis based specifically on a presumed benefit for a respective patient.

Gastrointestinal problems can be solved easily and quickly through minimally invasive surgery. Contact our office to find out more. We serve patients in Sarasota, Bradenton, Venice, Lakewood Ranch, Anna Maria, Bradenton Beach, Holmes Beach, Longboat Key, Palmetto, North Port, Englewood, Parrish, Arcadia, and Ellenton, Florida.