Objective: To evaluate the influence of laparoscopic total mesorectal excision (TME) on postoperative urinary function. Methods: One-hundred and sixty-eight patients undergoing TME procedure were reviewed. Of the patients, 112 cases underwent laparoscopic TME (laparoscopic group), and 56 cases were subjected to open TME (laparotomy group), and the postoperative urinary function of the patients were assessed through several aspects that included the urethral catheter indwelling time, incidence of urinary retention within 30 d after operation, urodynamic parameters on postoperative day 7 to 10, and international prostate symptom score (IPSS) at 3 months after operation. Results: The general preoperative data of the two groups were comparable. The postoperative urethral catheter indwelling time in laparoscopic group was shorter than that in laparotomy group (P<0.05). The urodynomic tests showed that peak urine flow rate and maximum detrusor pressure in laparoscopic group were higher than those in laparotomy group (both P<0.05); the voided volume of the two groups had no significant difference (P>0.05); the postvoid residual urine volume in laparoscopic group was less than that in laparotomy group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in postoperative 3-month IPSS scores between the two groups (P>0.05). Conclusion: With a mastery of intraoperative essentials, the influence of TME on urinary function during short-term postoperative period is significantly milder after laparoscopic procedure than that exerted by laparotomy operation.