Resection of the liver with a water jet.

Intrahepatic dissection in ablative liver surgery can be accomplished easily and safely with a jet of normal saline generated by a standard agricultural electric sprayer. The jet washes away the intrahepatic parenchyma leaving the ducts and vessels undamaged and easily controlled during dissection. The technique, applied in 45 lobectomies in the dog and in 4 liver resections in man, reduced blood loss.