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Laparoscopic versus robotic right colectomy: technique and outcomes

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Abstract

Minimally invasive surgery has gained worldwide acceptance in the treatment of colonic cancer in the last decades, thanks to its well-known advantages in short-term outcomes. Nevertheless, the penetrance of minimally invasive colorectal surgery still remains low. Few studies and metanalysis, to date, have analyzed the results of robotic versus laparoscopic colorectal surgery, often with conflicting conclusions. The robotic platform, thanks to its technological features, may potentially overcome the limitation of standard laparoscopy, especially when performing a complete mesocolic excision resection and an intracorporeal anastomosis. Robotic surgery could also shorten the learning curve of young novice surgeons, provided that strict protocols of structured training are applied. This paper is an update on the current available outcomes of robotic vs laparoscopic surgery in right colectomy.

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Correspondence to Giampaolo Formisano.

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Giampaolo Formisano, Pasquale Misitano, Giuseppe Giuliani, Giulia Calamati, Lucia Salvischiani, Sofia Esposito and Paolo Pietro Bianchi have no conflict of interests or financial ties to disclose.

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Our study was conducted in accordance with the Italian government ethical guidelines for the treatment of humans and with Institutional Review Board approval.

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This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Formisano, G., Misitano, P., Giuliani, G. et al. Laparoscopic versus robotic right colectomy: technique and outcomes. Updates Surg 68, 63–69 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13304-016-0353-4

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