Transvaginal Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (vNOTES) for omentectomy – A case series

Abstract

Background and objectiveTransvaginal natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (vNOTES) has been applied massively in the gynecological field in recent years. The aim of the current study is to present the surgical technique of vNOTES omentectomy and to evaluate the feasibility of this procedure. MethodsA case series study of the first 5 vNOTES omentectomy procedures performed for surgical staging of suspicious early stage ovarian cancer, at Rambam Health Care Campus (Israel) and Imelda Hospital (Belgium) between November 2018 and August 2019. Sociodemographic and clinical data were retrieved from patients’ electronic charts. Primary points of interest included intra-operative bleeding, length of surgery, length of hospitalization, and surgical complications. ResultsThe median age was 61 years (range 50–72), and the median BMI was 27 kg/m2 (range 23–33). All the operations were carried out to completion through the vaginal GelPOINT, without insertion of an assistant abdominal trocar or conversion to another surgical approach. The median omentectomy time was 45 min (range: 39–52). The median estimated intraoperative blood loss was 150 ml (range: 20–200). The median hospital stay was 2 days (range: 1–3). ConclusionsvNOTES is a feasible technique for omentectomy in early stage ovarian cancer, with low rates of complications and improved cosmetic results.