Source: Urology Times
Robotic Surgery
Presented by Ashutosh K. Tewari, MD,
Weill-Cornell Medical College, New York.
* Robot-assisted laparoscopic partial nephrectomy is associated with shorter hospital stay and less bleeding, but the warm ischemia time is still around 30 minutes.* Studies comparing robot-assisted laparoscopic cystectomy and open radical cystectomy show similar oncologic outcomes. At a high-volume tertiary care center, the robotic technique was more cost-efficient, but that finding needs to be confirmed at other centers. Other remaining issues regarding the robotic procedure include the need to define how the reconstruction should be performed, the extent of the lymphadenectomy, and ensuring clear margins at lateral areas.
* A study of almost 4,000 patients reaffirms the safety of robotic-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP). Rates of major surgical, major medical, and minor medical complications were all ≤0.7%, and the rate of minor surgical complications was 3.3%.
* Studies comparing open and RALP show the surgeon is the most important variable in determining outcome.
* Extended lymph node dissection should be performed in high-risk prostate cancer patients, and can be done with RALP.
* A total reconstruction procedure including anterior and posterior restoration of the vesicourethral junction is associated with early return to continence and improvement in overall continence rates.
Some of the highlights from the AUA
Of interest is the growing application of robotic surgery for smaller kidney cancers (partial nephrectomy) and bladder cancer, which I have been performing since 2005 myself.
The other very important adaption is the posterior and anterior reconstruction of the urinary tract during robotic prostatectomy, which I have performing for over a year after attending Dr Tewari’s conference.