The ongoing pursuit of minimally invasive and minimally uncomfortable elective surgery continues. The authors present interim results of a prospective randomized trial of spinal vs general anesthesia for laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Fifty patients with American Society of Anesthesiologists status I or II were randomized to each arm. Pain at 4, 8, 12, and 24 hours after the procedure was significantly less following spinal anesthesia than in those patients who had general anesthesia.