Robotic Surgical Procedures
Conditions
Keywords
Robotic Surgical Procedures
Brief summary
This is a single-center retrospective observational cohort study evaluating surgical and clinical outcomes in pediatric patients undergoing robotic surgery at a tertiary children's hospital. All consecutive patients younger than 18 years who underwent robotic-assisted procedures (digestive, urologic, gynecologic, or thoracic surgery) between January 2025 and December 2025 at Meyer Children's Hospital IRCCS will be included. The primary objective is to describe postoperative complications within 30 days. Secondary objectives include conversion to open surgery, reintervention and readmission rates, length of hospital stay, postoperative pain, recovery parameters, and recurrence of the underlying disease within 12 months. Data will be collected retrospectively from electronic medical records, operative registries, laboratory reports, and follow-up documentation up to 12 months after surgery.
Detailed description
Robotic-assisted surgery has progressively expanded in pediatric practice over the past two decades, particularly in urology and increasingly in general, thoracic, and gynecologic pediatric surgery. While several case series and meta-analyses have demonstrated feasibility and safety in selected procedures, real-world institutional data remain essential to evaluate performance, safety, and outcome variability across different surgical domains. This study is a monocentric retrospective observational cohort conducted at Meyer Children's Hospital IRCCS. The study population includes all consecutive patients younger than 18 years who underwent robotic-assisted digestive, urologic, gynecologic, or thoracic surgical procedures between January 2025 and December 2025. Clinical data will be extracted from routinely collected hospital records, including electronic medical charts, operative registries, laboratory and imaging reports, discharge summaries, and outpatient follow-up documentation. The primary outcome is the occurrence of postoperative complications within 30 days, classified according to the Clavien-Dindo grading system when applicable. Secondary outcomes include: Conversion from robotic to open surgery Reintervention within 30 days Readmission within 30 days Surgical site and nosocomial infections Postoperative length of stay Postoperative pain assessed by Visual Analog Scale (VAS) within the first 72 hours Time to resumption of oral feeding and bowel function Recurrence of the primary surgical condition within 12 months Additionally, exploratory analyses will assess differences in outcomes across surgical specialties and evaluate potential factors associated with complications and prolonged hospitalization, including age, weight, comorbidities, procedural complexity, operative time, and conversion. Data will be analyzed using appropriate descriptive and comparative statistical methods.
Interventions
None listed
Sponsors
Meyer Children's Hospital IRCCS
Study design
Observational model
COHORT
Time perspective
RETROSPECTIVE
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
0 Days to 18 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Age \< 18 years at the time of surgery * Underwent robotic-assisted surgical procedure (digestive, urologic, gynecologic, or thoracic surgery) * Surgery performed between January 2025 and December 2025 at Meyer Children's Hospital IRCCS * Availability of essential clinical and perioperative data in the medical record
Exclusion criteria
* Missing essential clinical or postoperative data required for analysis * Documented opposition to the use of clinical data for research purposes
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Postoperative Complications Within 30 Days | 30 days after surgery | Occurrence of postoperative complications within 30 days after robotic-assisted surgery, classified according to the Clavien-Dindo grading system when applicable and documented in the medical record. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Reintervention Rate | 30 days after surgery | Unplanned surgical reintervention within 30 days after the index robotic-assisted procedure. |
| Hospital Readmission Rate | 30 days after discharge | Unplanned hospital readmission occurring within 30 days after discharge from the index hospitalization. |
| Postoperative Pain (VAS Score) | 72 hours after surgery | Pain intensity measured using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) every 6 hours during the first 72 postoperative hours, as recorded in routine clinical documentation. |
| Time to Resumption of Oral Feeding | Within 48 hours after surgery | Time from surgery to resumption of oral feeding as documented in the medical record. |
| Recurrence of Underlying Disease | Within 12 months after surgery | Recurrence of the primary surgical pathology requiring additional medical or surgical treatment during follow-up. |
Contacts
CONTACTRiccardo Coletta
Outcome results
None listed