Abstract
Objective: Address and review the risk of infection by healthcare professionals during laparoscopic procedures in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2, in addition to highlight the measures to minimize the chance of contamination. Bibliographic review: It is known that SARS-CoV-2 has the capacity to infect different tissues of the human body, such as the gastrointestinal ones. In addition, abdominal surgeries performed on tissues infected with the virus can lead to the suspension of this pathogen in aerosols released by surgical smoke or pneumoperitoneum. Therefore, the contact of the surgical team with this smoke constitutes a risk factor for SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, among the available techniques, the laparoscopic approach, despite also showing a risk of dissemination of viral particles, allows the construction of a safer surgical environment, especially if associated with individual protection measures and appropriate surgical techniques. In this sense, it is essential to qualify the team in order to minimize the dispersion of potentially contaminated gases. Final considerations: As this is a recent and controversial topic, further studies are needed in order to elucidate the lower dispersion of surgical gases during laparoscopic procedures in patients with COVID-19.