Laparoscopic describes an examination or an operation done with a laparoscope: a thin tube with a tiny camera, put into the body through a small cut, usually in the belly. The doctor looks at the organs on a screen instead of making a large opening. Everyday English also calls this keyhole surgery. It is a hospital word, a little technical, but patients hear it all the time: laparoscopic gallbladder surgery, laparoscopic tools. The ending -ic makes an adjective, so it needs a noun beside it: a laparoscopic operation. The name of the procedure itself is laparoscopy. Recovery is often faster than with a big open cut, though actually it is still real surgery.