Evaluation of perioperative lung ultrasound scores in robotic radical prostatectomy: prospective observational study

Robotic major abdominal surgeries are popular worldwide, yet very few clinical studies have investigated the effects of robotic surgery setup on respiratory outcomes. In this prospective observational study, it is aimed to demonstrate the change in ultrasonographic condition of the lungs throughout the robotic surgery and its relation with respiratory outcomes. Robotic radical prostatectomy patients without any preexisting lung or cardiac pathology were enrolled in the study. Lung ultrasound score (LUS) was chosen to evaluate lungs perioperatively in three different time points that is as follows: 5 min after intubation (T1), before extubation (T2), and 30 min after extubation (T3). Blood gas analyses were made at the same time points. Primary outcome was the change of LUS comparing T3 versus T1. Secondary outcomes included intraoperative change of LUS, severe postoperative pulmonary complication incidence, unplanned intensive care unit (ICU) admission incidence, comparison of oxygenation via PaO₂ and PaO₂/FiO₂, and sensitivity/specificity of LUS for determining ICU admission. Total 48 patients were analyzed. T3 LUS was significantly higher than T1 LUS, and T2 was the highest amongst (15.5 [6, 25] vs 8.5 [4, 20] vs 20.5 [13, 30], respectively, p < 0.01). Pre-extubation LUS were significantly higher in patients who were admitted to ICU comparing who were not (23.5 [17, 30] vs 20 [13, 27], p = 0.03). PaO₂/FiO₂ ratio did not change among the groups significantly (p = 0.14). ROC curve of T2LUS showed 67% sensitivity and 85% specificity with a cut-off value of 22.5 for ICU admission (AUC 0.73 [0.516, 0.937], p = 0.04). LUS significantly worsened in robotic prostatectomy throughout the surgery, yet clinical deoxygenation or severe PPC were not observed. On the other hand, pre-extubation LUS may be used to determine possible ICU admission for the patients.Clinical trial registry: This study was prospectively registered at Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT05528159).