Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Tutorial - page 3

main | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |

The cystic artery is then dissected circumferentially in a similar fashion. The artery is usually found just posterior to the cystic duct, toward the liver bed. The operator must be meticulous at this stage, as the right hepatic artery can be immediately adjacent to the cystic artery, and can be damaged with overzealous dissection. The cystic artery is then clipped twice proximally, once distally (toward the gallbladder) and divided with scissors. Again, the clip on the specimen side should be placed as close as possible to the gallbladder neck to allow for maximal clearance of the clips adjacent to the porta hepatis.