General Surgery Specialist

Lonestar Surgical Specialists PA

Vascular, Endovascular, General, and Cosmetic Surgery located in Decatur, TX

Dr. Daniel Morris, of Lonestar Surgical Specialists P.A., has more than 25 years of experience as a surgeon. He provides professional, precise, and comprehensive surgical expertise to a range of general surgery procedures, including laparoscopic hernia repair, gallbladder removal, and surgical treatment for breast, colon, and skin cancer. Call or click today to make an appointment at one of his offices in Decatur, Texas.

General Surgery

What is laparoscopy?

Laparoscopy is a type of surgery that uses a laparoscope, a thin tube with a tiny camera and a light on the end. With laparoscopy, Dr. Morris makes a small incision and places the laparoscope inside your body. The camera enables him to see inside your body via a video monitor to conduct the necessary surgical procedure rather than making a large incision and reaching inside.  

Laparoscopy is minimally invasive, which means you’ll have a faster recovery time due to a smaller cut. It is sometimes referred to as keyhole surgery.

What types of surgery can be done with laparoscopy?

Dr. Morris uses laparoscopy for hernia repair. Inguinal hernias, for example, are the most common type of hernias and appear in the groin, and they’re easily treated by laparoscopy, which requires only tiny incisions.

Through the laparoscope, Dr. Morris performs the hernia repair internally, and you require only minimal recovery time. He may also repair umbilical hernias, which appear in the area of the navel, and other midline hernias (appearing above the navel in the center of the body) with laparoscopy, depending on the size of a hernia.

Laparoscopy can be used to successfully remove a thyroid tumor or a parathyroid gland. In both cases, only tiny incision marks are left behind, whereas traditional surgery would require a significant incision. Since the thyroid is located at the base of the neck, the less visible the incision, the better result the patient will have cosmetically.

With laparoscopy, Dr. Morris can target and remove a thyroid tumor, a portion of the thyroid, or the parathyroid glands, which are small glands attached to the back of the thyroid. Parathyroid glands control calcium absorption.

Dr. Morris also uses laparoscopy for gallbladder removal. Recovery is much quicker because, in addition to a smaller incision, he does not need to cut the abdominal muscle to reach the gallbladder.

How is skin cancer surgery performed?

Dr. Morris performs Mohs style surgery, considered the gold standard for removing basal cell carcinomas and squamous cell carcinomas. This type of surgical removal takes place in stages, where only a small amount of tissue is removed at a time. After removing a layer of tissue, a pathologist works with Dr. Morris to examine under a microscope to see if it contains cancer cells. The procedure continues, one thin layer at a time until no cancer cells are found in the sample.

This surgery has a high success rate and leaves as much healthy tissue as possible and the smallest possible scar. This type of procedure is important when the cancerous lesion appears around the eyes, nose, lips, ears, scalp, finger, toes, or genitals, where scarring would be most visible.

What other general surgeries are available?

As a general surgeon, Dr. Morris can perform surgery on most body parts, particularly the extremities and abdomen. He is experienced in performing cancer and tumor removal, including working with patients with colon cancer and breast cancer.

Dr. Morris will work in conjunction with your primary care physician or specialist, such as an orthopedist, oncologist or rheumatologist, to make sure you receive the most effective surgery and care.

Patients have been turning to Dr. Morris at Lonestar Surgical Specialists P.A. for 25 years because of his surgical expertise, eye for precision, and compassionate care. If you want to be in good hands for your surgery needs, call or click to schedule an appointment today.