Oncological 3-port laparoscopic colectomy by 1 surgeon and 1 camera operator: a preliminary report

This retrospective study analyzed the short-term outcomes of oncological reduced-port laparoscopic colectomy (RPLC) using 3 ports performed by 1 surgeon and 1 camera operator. Patients who underwent laparoscopic colectomy for colorectal carcinoma in 2010 and 2011 were divided into 2 groups: the CLC group, which included 62 patients who underwent a conventional laparoscopic colectomy and the RPLC group, which included 28 patients who underwent reduced-port laparoscopic colectomy, respectively. There were no significant differences between the groups with regard to TNM stage, estimated blood loss, complications, conversion rate, pain score, the length of postoperative stay, or the number of harvested lymph nodes. However, the prevalence of right-side colectomy was higher and the operative time was significantly shorter in the RPLC group. RPLC was technically feasible, providing that the appropriate patients were selected. Therefore, even though its surgical benefit might be subtle, we believe that RPLC definitively contributes to the reduction of equipment and manpower costs and will be considered as a standard procedure in the near future.