title: Early experience using the da Vinci Surgical System for the treatment of mediastinal tumors.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The da Vinci Surgical System has been used in only a few cases for treating mediastinal tumors in Japan. Recently, we used the da Vinci Surgical System for various types of anterior and middle mediastinal tumors in clinical practice. We report our early experience using the da Vinci Surgical System.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seven patients gave written informed consent to undergo robotic surgery for mediastinal tumor dissection using the da Vinci Surgical System. We evaluated the safety and feasibility of this system for the surgical treatment of mediastinal tumors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two specialists in thoracic surgery who are certified to use the da Vinci S Surgical System and another specialist acted as an assistant performed the tumor dissection. We were able to access difficult-to-reach areas, such as the mediastinum, safely. All the resected tumors were classified as benign tumors histologically. The average da Vinci setting time was 14.0 min, the average working time was 55.7 min, and the average overall operating time was 125.9 min. The learning curve for the da Vinci setup and manipulation time was short.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Robotic surgery enables mediastinal tumor dissection in certain cases more safely and easily than conventional video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery and less invasively than open thoracotomy.
authors: Department of Surgery, Tokyo Medical University, Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Japan. naokjw@topaz.ocn.ne.jp
authors: Naohiro
authors: N
authors: Kajiwara
authors: Masahiro
authors: M
authors: Taira
authors: Koichi
authors: K
authors: Yoshida
authors: Masaru
authors: M
authors: Hagiwara
authors: Masatoshi
authors: M
authors: Kakihana
authors: Jitsuo
authors: J
authors: Usuda
authors: Osamu
authors: O
authors: Uchida
authors: Tatsuo
authors: T
authors: Ohira
authors: Norihiko
authors: N
authors: Kawate
authors: Norihiko
authors: N
authors: Ikeda
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004867:Equipment Design; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D059032:Learning Curve; D008297:Male; D008479:Mediastinal Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012371:Robotics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D025321:Surgery, Computer-Assisted / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation*; D020775:Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000295:instrumentation*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome