Background: To describe our experiences on robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (RALRP) for patients treated with transurethral resection of prostate (TURP) previously.
Methods: The clinical data of 14 patients who underwent RALRP after previous TURP between March 2012 and March 2017 at our hospital were retrospectively analyzed. All patients were followed-up about 4–64 months. Patients’ mean operation time, mean blood loss, mean postoperative catheter retained time, mean hospitalization time, complications, micturition control and oncologic outcome were comparatively reviewed.
Results: All cases were successfully performed through the abdominal cavity through the robotic surgical system. Mean operation time was (141±58) min. Mean blood loss was (198±220) mL, mean postoperative catheter retained time was (7.3±3.8) days, mean hospitalization time was (8.5±4.1) days. Three cases of postoperative pathology were positive, one patient was leaking urine after surgery, and no lymphatic leakage occurred. No distant metastasis occurred. One patient needed 1–2 pads per day after operation and the others were of urinary continence.
Conclusions: RALRP is an effective treatment for patients with prostate cancer who underwent previous TURP. It can be safely performed without compromising functional and oncology results. RALRP for patients treated with previous TURP is more difficult in technical performing than for patients without TURP treatment, because of the inflammatory response, tissue adhesion and continuity of the urethra caused by TURP.
