The building blocks of English

Affixes

lapar(o)-

The abdominal wall.

Greek lapara, flank.

A laparoscope is a fibre optic instrument which is inserted through the abdominal wall to view the organs in the abdomen, a procedure called laparoscopy; a laparotomy (Greek ‑tomia, cutting) is a surgical incision into the abdominal cavity, for diagnosis or in preparation for major surgery.