Robotic Surgery Trends and Efficiency in a High-Volume Gynecologic Surgery Center

Objective: This study evaluated trends and efficiency of robotic surgeons per surgical volume, procedure type, and subspecialty. As robotic surgery is more popular in gynecologic subspecialties, studies comparing surgical volume suggest that robotic gynecologic surgery is advantageous when performed by high-volume surgeons and used for complex surgeries. Materials and Methods: During 2017–2021, evaluations were made of 3914 robotic gynecologic surgery cases performed at the Inova Fairfax Women's Hospital, Fairfax, VA, USA. All patients having robotic gynecologic surgery during the study were included. Surgeons were divided into high-, medium-, and low-volume groups. Statistical analysis evaluated changes in procedure types, surgeon subspecialties, operating times, and surgeon volumes. Results: Over the 5 years, there was a significant increase in adnexal surgery, surgery for pelvic organ prolapse, and myomectomy. High-volume surgeons performed more-complex surgeries overall. Operating room (OR) and surgery times were significantly lower for high-volume surgeons than for other groups. Conclusions: There was an increased variety of procedure types performed on the Da Vinci® robot over the 5 years. The data showed that high-volume surgeons had shorter OR and surgery times while performing more-complicated surgeries. This supports that high-volume gynecologic surgeons perform robotic cases more efficiently. With the increased interest in robotic surgery among surgeons and patients, an ongoing analysis of robotic surgery trends is essential to optimize availability, usage, and outcomes of these surgeries. (J GYNECOL SURG 20XX:000)