Current Status of Robotic Surgery in Pediatric Urology.

Abstract

Robot-assisted laparoscopic surgery (RALS) has been increasingly embraced in the fields of adult and pediatric urology, especially in North America and Europe. The advantages of a stable magnified three-dimensional view, tremor filtering, and motion scaling allow for precise intracorporeal exposure and suturing. With this review, we aim to provide the most recent evidence on RALS applied to pediatric urology. We systematically searched the following databases: PubMed and EMBASE. We critically reviewed the available literature on the use of robotic technology in pediatric patients. We extrapolated and summarized the most recent evidence on RALS as applied to pyeloplasty, radical and partial nephrectomy, ureteral reimplantation, kidney stones treatment, bladder augmentation, bladder neck reconstruction, Mitrofanoff appendicovesicostomy, and Malone antegrade continence enema. RALS is technically feasible for selected pediatric patients and may achieve comparable surgical outcomes compared to the standard of care, but large case series and randomized controlled trials are still needed. We strongly believe that the evolution of robotic platforms will offer an alternative in the treatment of pediatric patients, along with improved care and quality of life.