Robotics in urological surgery: review of current status and maneuverability, and comparison of robot-assisted and traditional laparoscopy

Abstract

To assess the current state of robot-assisted urological surgery, the literature concerning surgical robotic systems, surgical telemanipulators and laparoscopic systems was reviewed. Aspects of these systems pertaining to maneuverability were evaluated, with a view to quantifying their stability and locomotive properties and thereby determining their suitability for use in assisted laparoscopic procedures, particularly robot-assisted laparoscopic urological surgery. The degree of maneuverability and versatility of a robotic system determine its utility in the operating room, and the newer-generation surgical robotic systems have been found to possess a higher degree of maneuverability than older class 1 and class 2 systems. It is now clearly established that robots have an important place in the urologist's armamentarium for minimally invasive surgery; however, the long-term outcomes of several urological procedures (other than robot-assisted radical prostatectomy) performed with the da Vinci surgical robotic system have yet to be evaluated.