Transoral robotic surgery for the treatment of T1-T2 carcinoma of the larynx: preliminary study.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: To determine the feasibility and the preliminary oncological results of transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for the treatment of early stage laryngeal tumors. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective single center study. METHODS: We reviewed the medical records of 23 patients who underwent TORS for the treatment of T1 or T2 laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma between August 2009 and March 2012. RESULTS: Laryngeal tumors were involving the glottis (13 cases) and the supraglottis (10 cases). They were classified T1 N0 in 16 cases, T2 N0 in four cases, and T2 N+ in three cases. The median TORS operative time was 60 minutes (ranging from 30 to 118 minutes). The median hospitalization time was 7.5 days. Histopathological examination of the resected tumors confirmed 14 cases in which the margins were clear, four cases in which the surgical margins were close (less than 1 mm), one case in which the margins were microscopically positive, and in four cases margins status were not able to be recorded. A tracheostomy was carried out for three patients, and 11 patients got a nasogastric feeding tube postoperatively. The local recurrence rate was 8.7% (2/ 23 cases), and in both cases the recurrence occurred in the anterior commissure area only. The overall larynx preservation rate was 95,7% (22/ 23 cases). CONCLUSION: In this preliminary study, we demonstrated that laryngeal TORS is feasible and may result in oncological results comparable with other treatment strategies, including laser CO2 surgery. This innovative approach needs to be evaluated through randomized multi-institutional trial. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4.

Transaxillary robotic thyroid surgery: a preliminary European experience.

BACKGROUND: Robot-assisted endoscopic transaxillary thyroidectomy is an emerging surgical technique that needs to be evaluated in European patients. We evaluate the feasibility and preliminary results of our experience of this technique in a cohort of patients from within a single European university hospital (Nîmes, France). METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of the first 23 patients, treated consecutively between September 2010 and June 2012. RESULTS: Nine patients underwent total thyroidectomy and 14 patients lobectomies. All procedures were completed successfully with a mean total operative time of 134 min. We observed a single case of internal jugular vein injury during the console time. No instances of persistent complications were observed; however, minor postoperative events occurred in 5 patients. Pathological diagnoses included benign follicular adenoma in 18 patients, benign adenoma with lymphoid thyroiditis in 1 patient, and benign adenoma with Graves' disease in 4 patients. CONCLUSIONS: Robotic thyroid surgery is feasible in European patients and can be safely performed on selected patients. This technique has infrequent minor complications and provides a high level of satisfaction.

Robotic thyroid surgery: our experience with the infraclavicular approach.

BACKGROUND: Robot-assisted endoscopic transaxillary thyroidectomy is an emerging surgical technique. Despite promising results it presents some limitations and remains controversial in terms of usefulness and validity. We developed an alternative robotic technique using a gasless infraclavicular approach. METHODS: We tested this approach using cadaveric dissection, then we performed the technique on a series of 21 patients from October 2009 to July 2010. RESULTS: Sixteen patients underwent total thyroidectomy and 5 patients underwent lobectomies. Mean total operative time was 197 minutes. We observed postoperative complications in 4 patients. Pathologic diagnoses included: benign follicular adenoma (19 patients) and single papillary carcinoma <1 cm in diameter pT1a (2 patients). CONCLUSIONS: The infraclavicular approach for robotic thyroidectomy is feasible, but is not safe enough to be recommended, based on our experience and on the technical difficulties encountered. The use of 2 robotic arms instead of 3 is a major limitation for this technique.