Abstract
Robotic-assisted surgical approaches for vascular surgery are feasible regarding minimally invasive exposure, dissection, ligation and skeletonization for varicose vein ligation, anterior spine exposure, femoral-popliteal bypass, femoral vein harvest and aortic aneurysm repair. The authors performed a cadaveric exploration to demonstrate proof of concept and feasibility for a robotic-assisted approached. Surgeon autonomy over endoscopic vision, robotic instrumentation and retraction were noted as key benefits over existing open vascular approaches. Robotic-assisted approaches for vascular surgery enable innovative minimally invasive approaches to disease states not amenable to endovascular repair. Potential reductions in paresthesia through nerve identification were noted during a cadaveric exploration for varicose vein ligation in the setting of chronic venous insufficiency. Minimally invasive femoral artery exposure via a retroperitoneal approach could potentially reduce the morbidity associated with the traditional groin incision. Further exploration and procedure refinement are warranted.
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This study was funded by Intuitive Surgical Inc. (Sunnyvale, CA).
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Authors Dr. Kyle Miller, Dale Bergman and Glenn Stante declare employment through Intuitive Surgical and each own stock in the company. Author Dr. Chandu Vemuri has received a honoraria for lab participation.
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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
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Miller, K., Bergman, D., Stante, G. et al. Exploration of robotic-assisted surgical techniques in vascular surgery. J Robotic Surg 13, 689–693 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11701-018-00917-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11701-018-00917-8