title: Robotic liver resection: initial experience with three-arm robotic and single-port robotic technique.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Robotic-assisted surgery offers a solution to fundamental limitations of conventional laparoscopic surgery, and its use is gaining wide popularity. However, the application of this technology has yet to be established in hepatic surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective analysis of our prospectively collected liver surgery database was performed. Over a 6-month period, all consecutive patients who underwent robotic-assisted hepatic resection for a liver neoplasm were included. Demographics, operative time, and morbidity encountered were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 7 robotic-assisted liver resections were performed, including 2 robotic-assisted single-port access liver resections with the da Vinci-Si Surgical System (Intuitive Surgical Sunnyvalle, Calif.) USA. The mean age was 44.6 years (range, 21-68 years); there were 5 male and 2 female patients. The mean operative time (± SD) was 61.4 ± 26.7 minutes; the mean operative console time (± SD) was 38.2 ± 23 minutes. No conversions were required. The mean blood loss was 100.7 mL (range, 10-200 mL). The mean hospital stay (± SD) was 2 ± 0.4 days. No postoperative morbidity related to the procedure or death was encountered.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our initial experience with robotic liver resection confirms that this technique is both feasible and safe. Robotic-assisted technology appears to improve the precision and ergonomics of single-access surgery while preserving the known benefits of laparoscopic surgery, including cosmesis, minimal morbidity, and faster recovery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, USA.
authors.forename: Emad
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kandil
authors.forename: Salem I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Noureldine
authors.forename: Bob
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Saggi
authors.forename: Joseph F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Buell
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006498:Hepatectomy / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012371:Robotics / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult