Effects of the Scopist's Skills on the Perioperative Outcomes of Laparoscopic Liver Resection

Laparoscopic liver resection (LLR) is a difficult procedure that requires the scopist to have a high skill level. Scopists play an important role in ensuring an appropriate surgical field. This is the first study that focuses on the scopist's skills in perioperative outcomes of LLR.

Patients who underwent LLR from April 2018 to March 2023 were included in this study. The scopists were separated into expert (≥ 10 LLR procedures as a scopist) and beginner (< 10 LLR procedures as a scopist) groups. The effects of the scopists' skills on the perioperative outcomes of LLR between the two groups were examined retrospectively. In addition to listing baseline characteristics and perioperative outcomes, this study viewed video recordings to list intraoperative surgical manipulation factors as new attempts.

No significant differences were observed in the baseline characteristics or perioperative outcomes between the two groups. The duration of the time during which the surgical procedure was interrupted due to scope operation errors during the Pringle maneuver was significantly longer in the beginner group (71 vs. 198 s, p < 0.001).

The scope manipulation by the less experienced LLR scopists sometimes hindered the progress of the surgery. The scopist's skills may lead to an increased psychological burden on the surgeon and prolonged operative times.