eng Science and Education Publishing Global Journal of Surgery 2014-12-30 2 3 49 51 10.12691/js-2-3-5 JS2014235 article Francesco Roscio francesco_roscio@yahoo.it 1 Francesca Combi 1 Ildo Scandroglio 1 Division of General Surgery, Department of Surgery, Galmarini Hospital, Tradate, Italy Most of the abdominal surgical emergencies can be effectively treated by laparoscopic techniques. Nowadays, the number of high-risk patients is growing, mainly due to the increased life expectancy of the population. This condition is often a contraindication to minimally invasive surgery. This review article provides a clarification of the concept of high-risk patient and his eligibility to laparoscopic surgery, even in abdominal emergencies. Literature review of these topics was performed in PubMed/ MEDLINE up to September 2014. Our hypothesis is that laparoscopic surgery in urgency is not contraindicated for the high-risk patient, which may indeed benefit from it. http://pubs.sciepub.com/js/2/3/5/js-2-3-5.pdf laparoscopic surgery emergency high-risk patient