Robot-assisted Hysterectomy is Safe for Obese Patients

Obesity does not impact perioperative outcomes in women undergoing robotic hysterectomy, according to a study presented at the Society of Laparoscopic Surgeons’ Minimally Invasive Surgery Week.

Karina Hew, MD, et al, conducted a single-center, retrospective study of 274 patients who underwent robot-assisted hysterectomy for both benign and malignant indications. Data collected included age, body mass index (BMI), race, medical comorbidities, previous abdominal surgeries, pathology and uterine weight. Perioperative outcome variables included surgical times, intraoperative and post-operative complications, estimated blood loss (EBL), length of stay and hospital charges.

Of the patients, 51.8% (p=142) were obese and 48.2% (p=132) were not obese, as defined by the World Health Organization’s 2004 BMI classification table. Demographic data, number of previous abdominal surgeries, type of pathology and number of cancer cases were similar between two groups.

Outcomes were similar in both the obese and non-obese groups:

• EBL: 11 9ml vs 109 ml (p=.41)
• Total surgical length in minutes: 141 vs 133 (p=.15)
• Console time in minutes: 39 vs 42 (p=.38)
• Length of stay in days: 1.78 vs 1.64 (p=.63)
• Post operative complications: 11.4% vs 15.2% (p=.16)
• Total hospital cost: $10,950.00 vs $9,638.00 (p= 0.18)