Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is the ‘gold standard' for treatment of symptomatic cholelithiasis. The potential for laparoscopic cholecystectomy to be performed as a day case surgery was first recognized in 1990. Nowadays laparoscopic cholecystectomy is widely performed on day-case basis in many countries, like United States and United Kingdom. Advantages of day-case laparoscopic cholecystectomy (DCLC) over inpatient LC include early return to the community and work, providing a substantial reduction in hospital costs, avoiding complications associated with hospital stay. Several published studies have testified to the safety and feasibility of DCLC and nearly all of them confirmed that DCLC is safe for most of patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy under specific inclusion criteria and appropriate postoperative assessment.

AIM OF THE WORK
The aim of the present prospective study was to compare between the surgical outcomes of day-case laparoscopic cholecystectomy performed under strict versus relaxed criteria in the Alexandria Main University Hospital (AMUH).