Benefits and Predictors of Outcomes in Robotic Distal Pancreatectomy and Minimally invasive Pancreatectomy, details study

A new study published in the journal of BMC Surgery showed that shorter operational time, less intraoperative blood loss, a shorter postoperative hospital stays, and a higher textbook outcome (TO) rate are only a few of the obvious benefits of robotic distal pancreatectomy (RDP).

One of the newest and most sophisticated minimally invasive surgical techniques for treating pancreatic body-tail cancers is robotic distal pancreatectomy. Its superiority versus laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy (LDP) is still up for debate, though. Additionally, the best short-term postoperative result is Textbook Outcome. However, it hasn't been utilized as an outcome in many research that compare these two minimally invasive surgical methods. Thus, the effectiveness of RDP in pancreatic body-tail tumors is evaluated in this study.

All consecutive patients who had a conventional minimally invasive distal pancreatectomy (MIDP) at a high-volume pancreatic facility between January 2019 and December 2022 had their data retrospectively examined. The RDP and LDP groups were compared in terms of perioperative factors, clinical and demographic traits, and more. To identify characteristics that are independently linked to TO accomplishment, this research also conducted a multivariate logistic regression analysis and computed the rate of TO achievement after MIDP.

The research comprised 196 patients who had conventional MIDP, 97 of whom were in the RDP group and 99 of whom were in the LDP group. RDP was linked to decreased intraoperative blood loss (50 vs. 100 mL, P<0.001) and a shorter operating time (129.48 vs. 177.27 min, P<0.001) than LDP.

There were no statistically significant differences in the occurrence of serious postoperative complications between the two groups, however the RDP group had a higher TO rate (68.0% vs. 53.5%, P = 0.042) and a shorter postoperative hospital stay (10 vs. 11 days, P = 0.031). In all, TO was attained by 60.7% of patients (119/196).

According to multivariate logistic regression analysis, being overweight (OR 2.366, 95% CI 1.243–4.502, P = 0.009), being older (≥75 years) (OR 3.758, 95% CI 1.480–9.546, P = 0.005), and having a longer operative time (> 232 min) (OR 2.554, 95% CI 1.096–5.952, P = 0.030) were independent risk factors for not achieving TO following MIDP.

Overall, RDP has a number of advantages, including shorter hospital stays, less blood loss, shorter operating times, and better textbook outcomes rates. On the other hand, younger age, normal body weight, and shorter operating duration are associated with obtaining TO for MIDP.

Source:

Jiang, Q., Mou, Y., Jin, W., & Lu, C. (2026). Robotic vs. laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy: a leap towards superior outcomes? BMC Surgery. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12893-026-03581-0