Initial experience and surgical outcomes of robotic-assisted total hysterectomy using the da Vinci SP surgical system

Introduction: The da Vinci SP surgical system is a surgical platform capable of implementing robotic-assisted surgery through a single port and was first introduced in Japan at our hospital. In this paper, we describe our experience of the initial introduction of the da Vinci SP surgical system and its surgical outcomes. This is the first report on the surgical outcomes of using da Vinci SP, and its comparison with the conventional system in Japan. Methods: After developing an application for a highly difficult new medical technology in-house, we compared the surgical outcomes (median values) of 15 patients who had undergone total hysterectomy at our hospital using the da Vinci SP (1-port) system (SP group) for uterine myoma after March 2023 and of 154 patients who underwent total hysterectomy using the conventional da Vinci Xi (four ports) system (Xi group) for uteri weighing <500 g. Results: The results of the comparison of the characteristics between 15 patients in the SP group and 154 patients in the Xi group were as follows: uterus weight (g): 230 (90–500) versus 222 (55–496) (p =.35); surgical time (minutes): 199 (171–251) versus 198 (88–387) (p =.63); intraoperative blood loss (mL): 13 (5–82) versus 20 (2–384) (p =.17); and rate of surgical complication (%): 0.0 versus 1.3 (p =.66). The data indicated a comparable weight of the resected uterus, surgical time, intraoperative blood loss, and rate of surgical complications between the two groups. Conclusion: Robotic-assisted total hysterectomy using the da Vinci SP surgical system allowed clinicians to safely perform surgeries according to the conventional systems.