Inpatient opioid use and pain control after robotic versus laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy

During the past decade, the proportion of bariatric surgery performed robotically has been rising. However, the clinical benefits of the robotic approach over laparoscopy are uncertain. One area in need of further investigation is pain control after robotic versus laparoscopic bariatric surgery.

A retrospective cohort study was conducted of bariatric surgery patients undergoing laparoscopic or robotic sleeve gastrectomy at a single institution from October 2019 to August 2022. Inpatient opioid use was measured in morphine milliequivalents. Pain scores were collected by the nursing staff.

A total of 368 patients were included: 286 laparoscopic and 82 robotic surgery patients. The groups shared similar demographics. For the entire cohort, the mean age was 42 years, the body mass index was 50 kg/m², and 79% were female. Mean operative time was significantly lower for laparoscopic surgeries (87.5 ± 47.3 minutes vs 109.3 ± 30.3 minutes; P < .01). The median total inpatient morphine milligram equivalents used was similar for both groups: 52.3 (31.5-77.0) for the laparoscopic group versus 40 (24-74.5) for robotic (P = .13). Mean postoperative pain scores (scale out of 10) were not significantly different between groups: 5.2 ± 1.7 (postoperative day 0) and 4.5 ± 1.7 (day 1) for laparoscopic patients versus 5.1 ± 2.0 (day 0) and 4.4 ± 1.8 (day 1) for robotic. The proportion of patients prescribed opioids at discharge was significantly higher for the laparoscopic group (75.2% vs 62.2%; P = .02). Other clinical outcomes, including duration of stay, 30-day readmissions, and visits to the emergency department, were not significantly different.

There is no difference in inpatient opioid use or pain scores between patients undergoing laparoscopic and robotic sleeve gastrectomy.