Treatment of aorto-iliac occlusive lesions by aortic robotic surgery: learning curve and midterm outcome

Objectives To evaluate learning curve and midterm results of aorto-iliac occlusive disease (AIOD) revascularization by robot-assisted laparoscopic (RAL) surgery. Design A prospective single-center study was conducted. Materials and methods Patients with AIOD in the vascular surgery department of Georges Pompidou European Hospital (Paris, France) treated by RAL from February 2014 to February 2019 were included. Demographic characteristics, past medical history, TASC (Trans-Atlantic Inter-Society Consensus) lesions classifications, mortality, primary and secondary patency, as well as complication rates were collected. Safety was analyzed by CUSUM method with a conversion rate of 10%, operative time by cumulative average-time model and primary and secondary patency by Kaplan-Meier method. Results Seventy patients were included, 18 (25.7%) with TASC C lesions and 52 (74.3%) with TASC D lesions. Before discharge 14 (24.3%) patients had surgical complications. Among them, 10 (14.3%) required at least one reintervention. One (1.4%) patient died during the hospitalization. The learning curve in terms of safety (conversion rate) was 13 cases with an operating time of 220 minutes after 35 patients. During follow-up (median 37 months [21; 49]), 63 patients (91.3%) improved their symptoms, 53 (76.8%) became asymptomatic and 3 graft limb occlusions occurred. The primary patency at 12, 24, 36 and 48 months was 94%, 92%, 92% and 92% respectively, while the secondary patency for the same intervals was 100%, 98.1%, 98.1% and 98.1% respectively. Conclusion Robotic surgery in AIOD revascularization seems safe and effective; allowing to treat patients with few comorbidities and severe lesions, in a dedicated center experienced in RAL, with excellent patency. Prospective clinical trials should be performed to confirm safety.