Comparison of laparoscopic pyeloplasty vs. robot-assisted pyeloplasty for the management of ureteropelvic junction obstruction in children

Minimally invasive surgery in the operating rooms near you

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

This review delineates the benefits of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and its utilization at surgical centers and our institution. It further explores the literature for comparative outcomes of performing MIS to traditional open surgery for a variety of surgical subspecialties.

RECENT FINDINGS

In addition to its proven safety when compared to the open surgical technique, MIS has broad applications in many surgical subspecialties to enhance perioperative outcomes in both pediatric and adult patients.

SUMMARY

Although there are certain disadvantages with regard to cost of implementation in nascent communities and total operating time when the surgical complexity increases (such as utilizing a robotic approach), the added benefit of improved patient outcomes due to smaller incision sites is repeatedly proven in the literature making this technique globally essential.

An assisted suspension fixation technique in transperitoneal laparoscopic pyeloplasty for infants and young children with ureteropelvic junction obstruction: a retrospective cohort study

Background

Anderson-Hynes pyeloplasty is a classic and highly effective technique for treating congenital ureteropelvic junction obstruction (UPJO). Laparoscopic minimally invasive surgery (MIS) has become the preferred approach for infants and young children. However, a small working area and the complexity of reconstruction procedure pose significant challenges. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of four-point suspension fixation technique in laparoscopic dismembered pyeloplasty (LDP) for infants and young children with UPJO.

Methods

This retrospective cohort enrolled 37 infants and young children diagnosed with UPJO and underwent transperitoneal LDP between 2014 and 2020. The 37 cases were divided into two Groups based on whether suspension fixation was applied during the transperitoneal LDP. Clinical characteristics and follow-up data of these cohorts were retrospectively collected and analyzed. Continuous variables with a normal distribution were expressed as mean ± standard deviation (SD) and analyzed using independent sample t-tests. Non-normally distributed continuous variables were reported as interquartile range (IQR) and analyzed with the Mann-Whitney U-test.

Results

In Group A, 21 cases underwent conventional LDP without suspension fixation, while in Group B, 16 cases underwent "suspension fixation" LDP. The operative time (237.9±63.0 vs. 186.4±52.3 min, P=0.01), anastomotic suturing completion time (125.2±21.6 vs. 75.9±12.1 min, P<0.001), and postoperative hospital stay duration [6.0 (4.0, 7.5) vs. 4.5 (3.0, 6.5) days, P=0.04] were significantly shorter in Group B than in Group A, and the intraoperative blood loss [15.0 (5.0, 21.0) vs. 7.5 (5.0, 10.8) mL, P=0.04] in Group B was significantly lower than that in Group A. There were no significant differences between the two Groups in preoperative and anteroposterior renal pelvic diameter (APD), postoperative days to drainage tube removal, and postoperative days to removal of double J (D-J) sent. In Group A, one case developed anastomotic stenosis during follow-up, which improved after ureteral balloon dilation. In Group B, one case developed recurrent febrile urinary tract infection (UTI) within two months of D-J stent removal and was ultimately cured with antibiotic treatment during follow-up. The success rates were 95.2% (20/21) in Group A and 93.8% (15/16) in Group B. Other cases who were followed up showed no recurrence of stenosis, urine leakage, or recurrent UTI.

Conclusions

The use of assisted suspension fixation in transperitoneal LDP is safe and efficient for infants and young children, helping to reduce operative time, overcome the small laparoscopic operating area, and address the steep learning curve, making it a valuable approach.

Feasibility and Challenges of Pyeloureteral Magnetic Anastomosis Device in Domestic Pigs: A Stepwise Approach with Extended Observation

OBJECTIVE

 The pyeloureteral anastomosis remains the most challenging part of pyeloplasty. A purpose-built anastomotic device could simplify this step and potentially improve outcomes. The concept of a pyeloureteral magnetic anastomosis device (PUMA) was proven in minipigs, but only in short term. Our aim was to test the PUMA in domestic pigs and achieve a prolonged follow-up period.

METHODS

 Five female domestic pigs underwent laparoscopy and ligation of the left ureter. Four weeks later, laparoscopic implantation of the PUMA was planned. Removal of the device and a retrograde contrast study were scheduled after another 4 weeks. The experiment was terminated when the animals could no longer be properly cared for due to their weight.

RESULTS

 Due to unexpected smaller ureteric diameters, a modified PUMA could only be successfully inserted in pig number 3 (49 kg). Four weeks later, the device was found to be dislocated, but the anastomosis remained patent. After modifying the study protocol, the PUMA was successfully implanted in pigs number 4 (96 kg) and 5 (68 kg) 8 weeks after ureteric ligation. Pig 4 developed malignant hyperthermia and died. In pig 5, the magnets were removed 4 weeks later. After an additional 8 weeks, the animal reached 135 kg and was terminated. The anastomosis remained patent and preserved its diameter.

CONCLUSION

 Despite limitations, our study successfully demonstrated that the PUMA can achieve a patent ureteric anastomosis in domestic pigs. This suggests a potential for minimally invasive ureteric anastomosis in clinical settings. Further research is needed to optimize the technique and validate its effectiveness in humans.

Early post-operative outcomes of robot-assisted pyeloplasty in patients with unilateral ureteropelvic junction obstruction

INTRODUCTION

Ureteropelvic junction obstruction (UPJO) is a commonly encountered abnormality and it can lead to serious consequences such as renal dysplasia eventually resulting in loss of kidney. Hence, early diagnosis and timely management remains the cornerstone of the treatment. The most anticipated technique amongst modern day urologist is the robot-assisted laparoscopic pyeloplasty (RALP). The study aims to determine early post-operative outcomes of robot-assisted laparoscopic transperitoneal pyeloplasty procedure in patients presenting with unilateral ureteropelvic junction obstruction to establish the local perspective.

METHODOLOGY

This is a descriptive study involving patients with ureteropelvic junction obstruction in a tertiary care facility in Karachi; Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplant (SIUT). A total of 46 participants were recruited. Robot-assisted laparoscopic transperitoneal dismembered Hynes-Anderson pyeloplasty was performed by a single surgeon with over 3 years of experience in the presence of the researcher. Early postoperative outcome total operative time, length of hospital stay, console time and blood loss were noted by the researcher as per operational definition. Data were analyzed on SPSS Version 22.

RESULTS

Mean age in our study was 46.51 years with the standard deviation of ± 10.87. Whereas, mean length of hospital stay, total operative time, total blood loss, console time, pre-hemoglobin, posthemoglobin, height, weight and BMI in our study was 1.19 ± 0.40 days, 64.58 ± 17.59 min, 9.56 ± 6.13 ml, 30.17 ± 4.99 min, 12.66 ± 1.47 ml, 11.79 ± 1.93 ml, 165.62 ± 8.23 cm, 68.34 ± 8.23 kg and 24.85 ± 3.34 kg/m2, respectively.

CONCLUSION

Recent advancements in technology have yielded the latest RALP technique which has been proven significantly better than existing approaches and similar results are reported by this study demonstrating improvement in peri-operative and post-operative outcomes ultimately ameliorating the quality of life of patients with UPJO.

Analysis of risk factors for stenosis after laparoscopic pyeloplasty in the treatment of ureteropelvic junction obstruction

BACKGROUND

Laparoscopic ureteroplasty is an effective method for managing ureteropelvic junction obstruction. Despite its high success rate, there remains a subset of patients who do not experience improvement in the hydrops.

METHODS

The study retrospectively analyzed the data of 143 patients with ureteropelvic junction obstruction (UPJO) who underwent laparoscopic pyeloplasty (LP) in our hospital from January 2015 to May 2022. Logistic regression was used to analyze the risk factors of recurrence stenosis after UPJO.

RESULTS

Out of these patients, 119 had complete clinical data and follow-up records. Among these patients, restenosis occurred in nine cases after the operation. There was a significant statistical difference in blood loss (P < 0.05). Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that the preoperative separation degree of the renal pelvis, cystatin C, and intraoperative blood loss were potential risk factors for recurrent stenosis after primary LP. When divided by split renal function (SRF), the odds ratio (OR) was 7.850 (P = 0.044), indicating that it was an independent risk factor for postoperative restenosis. Similarly, the OR for stenotic segment length was 0.025 (P = 0.011), also indicating it as an independent risk factor for restenosis. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve for stenotic segment length and SRF were 0.9056 and 0.7697, respectively.

CONCLUSION

In our study, we identified that preoperative renal pelvis separation, cystatin C, and intraoperative blood loss were potential risk factors for postoperative restenosis. SRF and stenosis segment length were independent risk factors for postoperative restenosis.

Robot-assisted pyeloplasty for ureteropelvic junction obstruction: initial experience with the novel avatera system

PURPOSE

This pilot study was designed to interpret the technically specific features of the avatera robotic system and present our initial experience with this novel platform in robot-assisted pyeloplasty (RAP).

METHODS

A single-center prospective study was conducted including all patients who underwent RAP with the avatera robotic system from June 2022 to October 2022 in our Department. Transperitoneal robot-assisted dismembered pyeloplasty was performed in all cases. The trocar placement and the surgical technique were similar in all patients. The successful completion of the procedures, operation time (including draping, docking and console time), decrease in hemoglobin postoperatively, and presence of any complications were the study's primary endpoints.

RESULTS

In total, nine patients underwent RAP using the avatera system. All procedures were successfully completed. The draping of the robotic unit was completed in a median time of 10 min (range 7-15), while the median docking time was 17 min (range 10-24). The median console time was 88 min (range 78-116) and no complications were noticed. The median hemoglobin drop was calculated to 0.7 g/dL (range 0.4-1). During the mean follow-up of 9.33 ± 2.78 months, no late postoperative complications were noticed.

CONCLUSION

The early outcomes of the use of the novel avatera system in RAP are presented. All operations were successfully completed with safety and efficacy, without complications or significant blood loss.