Average National Length of Stay - Cholecystectomy Laparoscopic Enlarge This is the U.S. national average length of stay (risk adjusted) in days that patients spent in the hospital for a cholecystectomy (chol-e-cys-tec-to-my), surgery to remove the gallbladder. In the traditional procedure, called open cholecystectomy, the gallbladder is removed through a 5-to-8-inch-long incision in the patient's abdomen. The incision is made just below the ribs on the right side and extends to just below the waist. A new way to remove the gallbladder is called laparoscopic cholecystectomy. This surgery uses a laparoscope, a small, fiber-optic camera that is inserted into the body in order to visually examine the inside of the abdominal cavity and direct surgical operations. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy requires several small incisions rather than one large incision.

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