Peri-operative SARS-CoV-2 infection increases postoperative mortality. The aim of this study was to determine the optimal duration of planned delay before surgery in patients who have had SARS-CoV-2 infection. This international, multicentre, prospective cohort study included patients undergoing elective or emergency surgery during October 2020. Surgical patients with pre-operative SARS-CoV-2 infection were compared with those without previous SARS-CoV-2 infection. The primary outcome measure was 30-day postoperative mortality. Logistic regression models were used to calculate adjusted 30-day mortality rates stratified by time from diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection to surgery. Among 140,231 patients (116 countries), 3127 patients (2.2%) had a pre-operative SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis. Adjusted 30-day mortality in patients without SARS-CoV-2 infection was 1.5% (95%CI 1.4-1.5). In patients with a pre-operative SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis, mortality was increased in patients having surgery within 0-2 weeks, 3-4 weeks and 5-6 weeks of the diagnosis (odds ratio (95%CI) 4.1 (3.3-4.8), 3.9 (2.6-5.1) and 3.6 (2.0-5.2), respectively). Surgery performed ≥ 7 weeks after SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis was associated with a similar mortality risk to baseline (odds ratio (95%CI) 1.5 (0.9-2.1)). After a ≥ 7 week delay in undertaking surgery following SARS-CoV-2 infection, patients with ongoing symptoms had a higher mortality than patients whose symptoms had resolved or who had been asymptomatic (6.0% (95%CI 3.2-8.7) vs. 2.4% (95%CI 1.4-3.4) vs. 1.3% (95%CI 0.6-2.0), respectively). Where possible, surgery should be delayed for at least 7 weeks following SARS-CoV-2 infection. Patients with ongoing symptoms ≥ 7 weeks from diagnosis may benefit from further delay.
Introduction
Lack of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that compare pure laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (LRP) with robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALRP) is an important gap of the literature related to the surgical treatment of the clinically localized prostate cancer (PCa).
Aim
To provide the first prospective randomized comparison on the functional and oncological outcomes of LRP and RALRP for the treatment of the clinically localized PCa.
Methods
Between 2007 and 2008, 128 consecutive male patients were randomized in two groups and treated by a single experienced surgeon with traditional LRP (Group I-64 patients) or RALRP (Group II-64 patients) in all cases with intent of bilateral intrafascial nerve sparing.
Main Outcome Measures
Primary end point was to compare the 12 months erectile function (EF) outcomes. Complication rates, continence outcomes, and oncological results were also compared. The sample size of our study was able, with an adequate power (1-beta > 0.90), to recognize as significant large differences (above 0.30) between incidence proportions of considered outcomes.
Results
No statistically significant differences were observed for operating time, estimated blood loss, transfusion rate, complications, rates of positive surgical margins, rates of biochemical recurrence, continence, and time to continence. However, the 12-month evaluation of capability for intercourse (with or without phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors) showed a clear and significant advantage of RALRP (32% vs. 77%, P < 0.0001). Time to capability for intercourse was significantly shorter for RALRP. Rates of return to baseline International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-6) EF domain score questionnaires (questions 1–5 and 15) (25% vs. 58%) and to IIEF-6 > 17 (38% vs. 63%) were also significantly higher for RALRP (P = 0.0002 and P = 0.008, respectively).
Conclusions
Our study offers the first high-level evidence that RALRP provides significantly better EF recovery than LRP without hindering the oncologic radicality of the procedure. Larger RCTs are needed to confirm if a new gold-standard treatment in the field of RP has risen.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.