Trends in Open, Laparoscopic, and Robotic Approaches to Colorectal Operations.

Area of Science:

• Minimally Invasive Surgery
• Surgical Technology
• Colorectal Surgery

Background:

• Robotic-assisted platform (RAP) adoption is increasing in various surgical fields.
• Colorectal surgery has seen a shift towards minimally invasive techniques.
• Understanding trends in surgical approach adoption is crucial for resource allocation and training.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the adoption trends of robotic-assisted platform (RAP) in colorectal surgery from 2013 to 2018.
• To evaluate the prevalence of robotic, laparoscopic, and open approaches over a six-year period.
• To assess the utilization of RAP across different patient demographics and risk profiles.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Project database.
• Analyzed colorectal surgery cases performed between 2013 and 2018.
• Assessed yearly prevalence of robotic, laparoscopic, and open surgical approaches.
• Evaluated trends in RAP adoption across age, gender, BMI, and American Society of Anesthesiology (ASA) subgroups.

Main Results:

• The overall frequency of open, laparoscopic, and robotic approaches was 36%, 46.8%, and 7.8%, respectively.
• While laparoscopic use remained stable, RAP prevalence increased significantly from 2.8% to 11.4%.
• The use of open approach declined from 40.8% to 33% during the study period.
• RAP adoption increased across all analyzed patient subgroups (age, gender, BMI, ASA).

Conclusions:

• Robotic-assisted platform (RAP) is increasingly adopted in colorectal surgery, showing a significant upward trend.
• The rise of RAP is associated with a decrease in open colorectal surgeries.
• Robotic-assisted surgery is being utilized more frequently in higher-risk, older, and obese patients, expanding minimally invasive options.