The risk of a broken scalpel blade during discectomy is considered extremely rare, while no guidelines exist regarding this complication. We report a case of a robotic broken blade removal following lumbar discectomy. A 52-year-old female was subjected to L4-L5 discectomy. During the annulus resection, the scalpel blade broke and was retained within the disc space. The broken blade migrated towards the abdominal cavity and viscera. Emergency CT angiography scan revealed that the main vessels were intact, while the broken surgical knife was located anterior to the lumbar spine at the L4/L5 level, to the left of the aorta and superiorly of the left common iliac artery. At that point, robot-assisted laparoscopy was performed. The broken instrument was located and carefully removed. It seems more proper that such foreign bodies should be removed, while robotic surgery may play a significant role in cases that the foreign body is near major vessels.
The management of abdominal leiomyosarcoma is challenging. Surgical excision is considered the only effective treatment; however, this is associated with considerable morbidity. Robotic surgery has emerged during the past decades and has enhanced the general surgery armamentarium, allowing surgeons to carry out demanding operations in a safe manner. The surgical resection of retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma (RPLM) can be associated with significant morbidity, which is primarily due to the origin or the close proximity of the tumor with important vascular structures, including the inferior vena cava and tributaries, the duodenum and the ureter. The present case describes the first case of robotic resection of RPLM in a high-volume robotic center. In the present case, a large RPLM was safely removed with respect to oncological principles with the use of the Da Vinci platform.
Background: Splenic cysts are infrequent findings in everyday medical practice. They are usually associated with nonspecific symptoms and the diagnosis is incidental. In most instances they are located in the left subcostal region, except for cases of huge sized cysts which can extend to the whole abdomen or pelvis. Aim: To present a case of a large hypogastric splenic cyst in a nulliparous woman, managed with robotic cystectomy. Review of the literature is included. Case: A 19year-old woman, presented to the gynecologic department with a painless, palpable mass in the lower abdomen. Ultrasonography revealed a pelvic cystic mass, originally misdiagnosed for an ovarian cyst. Serum biomarkers and β-hCG were negative. Definite diagnosis was made during explorative laparoscopy where the cyst was found to originate from the spleen. The surgery setup was changed from a lower to upper abdominal procedure. A robotically-assisted cystectomy was performed without concurrent splenectomy, and the splenic cavity was filled with an omental patch. There was no blood loss and the operation time was 163 minutes. Recovery was uneventful and there was no recurrence for a period of 16 months postoperatively. Conclusions: Pelvic splenic cysts are rare, and may be incidental findings during routine abdominal ultrasound scans. Modern minimally invasive approaches such as robotic surgery offer safe and efficient alternatives to standard techniques.
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