A laparotomy is an operation to look inside your abdomen, and at the organs there. There are many reasons why this operation might be needed. Laparotomy is a type of open surgery of the abdomen to examine the abdominal organs. Surgeons may use this surgery to diagnose and treat a variety of abdominal conditions. A laparotomy is an operation to look inside your abdomen, and at the organs there. There are many reasons why this operation might be needed. By definition, an exploratory laparotomy is a laparotomy performed with the objective of obtaining information that is not available via clinical diagnostic methods. It is usually performed in patients with acute or unexplained abdominal pain, in patients who have sustained abdominal trauma, and occasionally for staging in patients with a malignancy.