Adrenal gland surgery

The relative risks and complications increase proportionately according to the type of surgery, site of the adrenal lesion, extent of procedure performed, technique, the complexity of the problem, and lesion size. Extensive or complex surgery usually carries higher risks of bleeding and infection than smaller procedures, in general terms. Similarly, risk is relatively higher for recurrent and complex adrenal prob-lems, for associated lymph node dissections, and especially for those masses closer to or involving major vascular or neural structures (e.g., aorta, vena cava, renal ves-sels, or lumbar plexus). Bilateral and transabdominal dissection procedures are typi-cally associated with a higher frequency and greater range of complications compared to procedures involving the one side alone. This is principally related to the surgical accessibility and risk of organ/tissue/vascular/nerve/lymphatic injury.