BackgroundRobot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) is performed by urologists as one of the surgical procedures for treating prostate cancer. Numerous studies have been published with regard to the impact of prostate weight on performing RARP but were limited by the insufficient number of patients and use of the transperitoneal approach. This study aimed to determine the effect of prostate gland weight on the surgical and short-term oncological outcomes of RARP using the extraperitoneal approach.MethodsIn total, 1168 patients who underwent extraperitoneal RARP (EP-RARP) performed by a single surgeon at Yonsei University Severance Hospital between May 2009 and May 2016 were included in the study. The patients were divided into 4 groups according to the prostate weight measured by transrectal ultrasonography preoperatively. Intraoperative and postoperative outcomes were analyzed retrospectively. One-way analysis of variance and the chi-square test were used in the statistical analyses.ResultsAge, the Gleason score, clinical stage, and pathological stage were significantly different. Patients with a larger prostate size had a longer console time and higher estimated blood loss (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences between the 4 groups in length of hospital stay, duration of catheterization, blood transfusion, body mass index, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level, history of abdominal surgery, intraoperative complications, positive surgical margin, incidence of lymphocele, and PSA recurrence after 1 year.ConclusionsThe console time and estimated blood loss were significantly increased with a larger prostate size. However, there were no significant differences in the oncologic outcome and intraoperative complications, suggesting that EP-RARP requires meticulous bleeding control in patients with a prostate weighing > 75 g, and if appropriate management is implemented for blood loss intraoperatively, EP-RARP can be performed regardless of the prostate size.

PurposeTo evaluate the efficacy and safety of robotic procedures performed using the da Vinci Robotic Surgical System at a single institute.Materials and MethodsWe analyzed all robotic procedures performed at Severance Hospital, Yonsei University Health System (Seoul, Korea). Reliability and mortality rates of the robotic surgeries were also investigated.ResultsFrom July 2005 to December 2013, 10267 da Vinci robotic procedures were performed in seven different departments by 47 surgeons at our institute. There were 5641 cases (54.9%) of general surgery, including endocrine (38.0%), upper (7.7%) and lower gastrointestinal tract (7.5%), hepato-biliary and pancreatic (1.2%), and pediatric (0.6%) surgeries. Urologic surgery (33.0%) was the second most common, followed by otorhinolaryngologic (7.0%), obstetric and gynecologic (3.2%), thoracic (1.5%), cardiac (0.3%), and neurosurgery (0.1%). Thyroid (40.8%) and prostate (27.4%) procedures accounted for more than half of all surgeries, followed by stomach (7.6%), colorectal (7.5%), kidney and ureter (5.1%), head and neck (4.0%), uterus (3.2%), thoracic (1.5%), and other (2.9%) surgeries. Most surgeries (94.5%) were performed for malignancies. General and urologic surgeries rapidly increased after 2005, whereas others increased slowly. Thyroid and prostate surgeries increased rapidly after 2007. Surgeries for benign conditions accounted for a small portion of all procedures, although the numbers thereof have been steadily increasing. System malfunctions and failures were reported in 185 (1.8%) cases. Mortality related to robotic surgery was observed for 12 (0.12%) cases.ConclusionRobotic surgeries have increased steadily at our institution. The da Vinci Robotic Surgical System is effective and safe for use during surgery.

Postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) is still a concern in partial nephrectomy (PN), even with the development of minimally invasive technique. We aimed to compare AKI incidence between patients with and without diabetes mellitus (DM) and to determine the predictive factors for postoperative AKI. This case-matched retrospective study included 884 patients with preoperative creatinine levels ≤1.4 mg/dL who underwent laparoscopic or robot-assisted laparoscopic PN between December 2005 and May 2018. Propensity score matching was employed to match patients with and without DM in a 1:3 ratio (101 and 303 patients, respectively). Of 884 patients, 20.4% had postoperative AKI. After propensity score matching, the incidence of postoperative AKI in DM and non-DM patients was 30.7% and 14.9%, respectively (P < 0.001). In multivariate analysis, male sex and warm ischemia time (WIT) >25 min were significantly associated with postoperative AKI in patients with and without DM. In patients with DM, hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) >7% was a predictive factor for AKI, odds ratio (OR) = 4.59 (95% CI, 1.47–14.36). In conclusion, DM increased the risk of AKI after minimally invasive PN; male sex, longer WIT, and elevated HbA1c were independent risk factors for AKI in patients with DM.

PurposeThe aim of this study was to evaluate predictors of residual tumor and clinical prognosis in T1a-T1b (incidental) prostate cancer by analysis of specimens from men undergoing surgery for benign prostatic hyperplasia.Materials and methodsWe retrospectively reviewed medical records of incidental prostate cancer patients who had undergone radical prostatectomy. Patients whose tumor statuses were further confirmed by prostate biopsy, or who had used androgen deprivation therapy before radical prostatectomy, were excluded. Clinical and pathological parameters were analyzed to evaluate residual tumor and clinical prognosis. We used univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses, as well as receiver operator characteristics, to predict residual tumor (pT0).ResultsThe final analysis included 95 patients. Among these patients, 67 (70.53%) exhibited residual tumor, whereas 28 (29.47%) did not (pT0). Pathology findings showed that 44 (65.67%), 16 (23.88%), and 7 patients (10.45%) exhibited Gleason scores of G6, G7, and ≥G8, respectively. Fifty-seven and 10 patients exhibited pathologic T stages T2 and T3, respectively. Mean follow-up duration was 70.26 (±34.67) months. Biochemical recurrence was observed in 11 patients; none were pT0 patients. Multivariate logistic regression showed that low prostate-specific antigen density after benign prostatic hyperplasia surgery and invisible lesion on multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging were significantly associated with pT0. Additionally, a combination of these factors showed an increase in the diagnostic accuracy of pT0, compared with mpMRI alone (AUC 0.805, 0.767, respectively); this combination showed sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive values of 71.6%, 89.3%, and 94.1%, respectively.ConclusionOur results suggest that patients with incidental prostate cancer who have both prostate-specific antigen density ≤0.08 after benign prostatic hyperplasia surgery as well as invisible cancer lesion on multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging should be considered for active surveillance.

PurposeProstate cancer (PC) is a devastating and heterogeneous condition with diverse treatment options. When selecting treatments for patients with very high-risk PC, clinicians must consider patient comorbidities. We investigated the efficacy of the age-adjusted Charlson Comorbidity Index (ACCI) as a prognostic factor for patient outcomes after radical prostatectomy (RP).Materials and methodsWe retrospectively investigated the medical records of PC patients at our institution who underwent RP from 1992 to 2010. Very high-risk PC was defined according to National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines. Patients with incomplete medical records or who had received neoadjuvant therapy were excluded. Preoperative comorbidity was evaluated by the ACCI, and the prognostic efficacy of the ACCI was analyzed using univariable and multivariable Cox regression, competing risk regression model and Kaplan-Meier curves.ResultsOur final analysis included 228 men with a median age of 66 years (interquartile range 62–71) and median prostate specific antigen of 10.7 ng/mL. There were 41 (18%) patients with an ACCI score >3 and 88 (38.6%) patients with a biopsy Gleason score >8. Preoperative evaluation revealed that 159 patients (69.7%) had a non-organ confined tumor (≥T3). Following RP, 8-year prostate cancer-specific survival (PCSS) and overall survival (OS) rates were 91.6% and 83.4%, respectively. Competing risk regression analysis revealed that ACCI was significantly associated with other-cause survival and OS (p<0.05).ConclusionThe ACCI is an effective prognostic factor for other-cause survival and OS in very high-risk PC patients. RP should be considered carefully for patients with an ACCI score >3.