Robotic assisted surgery in pediatric gynecology: promising innovation in mini invasive surgical procedures

Study objective: Robotic assisted surgery is not yet widely applied in the pediatric field. We report our initial experience regarding the feasibility, safety, benefits, and limitations of robot-assisted surgery in pediatric gynecological patients.

Design: Descriptive, retrospective report of experience with pediatric gynecological patients over a period of 12 months.

Setting: Department of Pediatric Surgery, IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo Foundation.

Participants: Children and adolescents, with a surgical diagnosis of ovarian and/or tubal lesions.

Main outcome measures: Robot assembly time and operative time, days of hospitalization, time to cessation of pain medication, complication rate, conversion rate to laparoscopic procedure and trocar insertion strategy.

Results: Six children and adolescents (2.4-15 yrs), weighing 12-55 kg, underwent robotic assisted surgery for adnexal pathologies: 2 for ovarian cystectomy, 2 for oophorectomy, 1 for right oophorectomy and left salpingo-oophorectomy for gonadal disgenesis, 1 for exploration for suspected pelvic malformation. Mean operative time was 117.5 ± 34.9 minutes. Conversion to laparatomy was not necessary in any of the cases. No intra- or postoperative complications occurred.

Conclusion: Initial results indicate that robotic assisted surgery is safely applicable in the pediatric gynecological population, although it is still premature to conclude that it provides better clinical outcomes than traditional laparoscopic surgery. Randomized, prospective, comparative studies will help characterize the advantages and disadvantages of this new technology in pediatric patients.