Retroileal colorectal anastomosis after extended left colectomy: application for laparoscopic surgery.

Tension-free anastomosis is often difficult to achieve after extended left hemicolectomy because the residual colon is too short to reach the rectal stump. Retroileal colorectal anastomosis is very simple and useful for obtaining tension-free anastomosis. We first applied this technique to laparoscopic operations. We herein describe the procedure of laparoscopic retroileal colorectal anastomosis.