Minor Outpatient Surgery

Minor outpatient surgeries, or ambulatory or same-day surgeries, refer to surgical procedures performed in a hospital outpatient department, ambulatory surgery center (ASC), or physician’s office and do not require an overnight stay. These procedures are typically considered low-risk and relatively brief, allowing patients to return home on the same day as the surgery.

Examples of minor outpatient surgeries include:

1. Skin lesion removal: Excision of benign or malignant skin lesions, moles, cysts, or lipomas (benign tumors of fat cells).
2. Biopsies: Removal of tissue samples for diagnostic purposes, such as breast biopsies, skin biopsies, or endoscopic biopsies of the gastrointestinal tract.

Minor outpatient surgeries offer several advantages, including reduced cost, shorter recovery times, decreased risk of hospital-acquired infections, and greater convenience for patients, as they can return home on the same day and resume their normal activities relatively quickly. These procedures are usually performed under local, regional, or general anesthesia, depending on the complexity of the surgery and the patient’s health status.