One of the biggest draw backs to going under the knife is the scar that's left behind. That could be a thing of the past for some patients, at least for a few surgeries. The first "No Scar Surgery" to remove an organ was done in South Dakota this year and it was done at Avera McKennan hospital. We talked to the doctor who performed it and the woman who has nothing to show for it but a smile.

Jill Navrkal is a Registered Nurse at Avera Mckennan Hospital so she knows more about the inner workings of the body than most of us. She knew when she started having horrible heart burn and terrible persistent pain in her back that radiated up between her shoulder blades that something was wrong with her gallbladder. She's also a brand new mom and didn't want a long recovery time or a bunch of scars. 

That's where Dr. Brad Thaemert with the Surgical Institute of South Dakota comes in to play and makes history. In January he performed the first ever scar free surgery in the state at Avera McKennan hospital.

Dr. Thaemert says, "This new surgery is all about the scar. We try to do surgeries without leaving any scar and we're doing that by going through the base of the belly button and not leaving incisions anywhere else. It's still done laproscopically, but we are able to use a lapriscope and just one instrument through the inside of the belly button."

The secret to no scar surgery can be boiled down to a needle and thread and the thread looks like like fishing line to those of us not in the medical field.

Dr. Thaemert says, 'Instead of using instruments we're taking a needle and thread and running it through the belly wall. We are taking that needle and suturing it in to whatever we are working on which is the gallbladder (located in the liver bed and stores bile). We lift it and puppet it. We move it around. When we pull the string out there is no scar."

The downside to this type of surgery (cholecystectomy) is it takes twice as long because the surgeons are using half as many instruments. It would normally take 20 to 30 minutes and the no scar version takes about an hour.

Dr. Thaemert says, "I just can't operate as fast because it's really like operating with one hand tied behind my back."

The upside is absolutely no sign of surgery and the recovery is proving to be quicker. Jill had her gallbladder removed last month in February, but you'd never know.

Jill says, "I couldn't even tell I had it done. I had to lift up my belly button to look for the scar."

No pain, no scar, no complaints.

Jill says, "It was just amazing. The recovery and the fact that there is no scar, yeah it’s amazing."

So far, Dr. Thaemert and his partners are only doing scarless surgery to remove gallbladders,  but they expect appendectomies, lap bands and acid reflux surgeries are on their "scarless" horizon.