Minimally invasive prostate surgery shortens hospital stays, but doesn't result in fewer overall complications when compared to open procedures, according to researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Mass.
The rate of minimally invasive prostate procedures increased from 9.2% to 43.2% between 2003 and 2007, even though current research has failed to prove that laparoscopic surgery produces superior outcomes compared to open techniques, the researchers report in the Oct. 14 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
In fact, the researchers' review of close to 9,000 men who underwent minimally invasive or open prostate surgery revealed that even though laparoscopic approaches resulted in shorter hospital stays, reduced the need for blood transfusions, lessened post-op respiratory complications and anastomotic stricture, it actually increased incidences of genitourinary complications, incontinence and erectile dysfunction.
The higher complication rates could be related to the still-developing technical skills of surgeons who are adapting to minimally invasive techniques introduced just 8 years ago, say the researchers.
"As with any new procedure, there is a learning curve," says Jim Hu, MD, a surgeon in the urology division at BWH and the study's lead author. "This finding is based on an average of the outcomes of many surgeries performed by many different surgeons with different skill levels throughout the country."
Daniel Cook
