Perioperative Outcomes Between Single-Port and “Multi-Port” Robotic Assisted Radical Prostatectomy: Where do we stand?

Objectives: To report the results of the first quantitative synthesis of literature data from studies comparing Single-Port Robot-Assisted Radical Prostatectomy performed using the novel SP surgical platform (SP-RARP) versus RARP performed by using multi-arms robotic systems. Methods: Studies comparing the use of da Vinci SP versus that of other available multi-arms da Vinci platforms were eligible for inclusion in the present review. From selected studies, data were extracted by using a standardized data extraction form. Patients baseline demographics and disease characteristics and perioperative variables of interest for the present review (operative time, blood losses, complications, length of stay and positive surgical margins rate) were noted whenever available. Weighted mean difference (WMD) was used as a summary measure for continuous outcomes, whereas the odds ratio with 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated for binary variables. Pooled estimates were calculated by using the random-effect model to account for clinical heterogeneity. Statistical analysis was performed using Review manager 5.3 (Cochrane Collaboration, Oxford, UK). Results: Four comparative studies were retrieved, analysing a total of 610 patients. Baseline characteristics of treatment groups were statistically similar. No significant differences were found when comparing SP-RARP versus multi-arms robotic systems in terms of operative time, blood losses, complications rate and positive surgical margins. Conversely, SP-RARP was found to allow for a shorter hospital stay (WMD = -0.79 days, 95% CI = -1.07; -0.52, P-value < .001). Conclusion: The adoption of the SP platform for duplicating the technique of minimally-invasive RARP appears to be safe and feasible.