Rates of complex elective cholecystectomy are increasing as the population ages.In a cohort study, robotic cholecystectomy for complex gallbladder disease was associated with reductions in further interventions and complications.While patients in the laparoscopic group had significantly reduced operating room costs compared with the robotic group, there was no difference in the overall cost of care between the two groups.
Robotic cholecystectomy for complex gallbladder disease was linked with reductions in further interventions and complications, without increasing the total cost of care, a cohort study suggested.
Among patients undergoing complex elective cholecystectomy at a single center, a laparoscopic approach was independently associated with an increased need for unplanned endoscopic or percutaneous intervention compared with a robotic approach (OR 4.24, 95% CI 1.24-14.52, P=0.02), reported Katharine E. Caldwell, MD, of the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, and colleagues.
Patients in the robotic group also had a significantly reduced rate of overall complications compared with the laparoscopic group (14.5% vs 28.6%, P=0.04), they wrote in JAMA Surgery.
While patients in the laparoscopic group had significantly reduced operating room costs compared with the robotic group ($7,720 vs $8,936, respectively), there was no difference in the overall cost of care between the two groups ($14,309 vs $14,476, respectively).
