Introduction/Background To demonstrate that robotic surgery improves the ergonomics of the surgeon and the assistant compared to conventional laparoscopy through a single center institutional survey.

Methodology Cross-sectional observational study of gynecological surgeries performed with robotic assistance or conventional laparoscopy at Clínico San Carlos Hospital from 2008 to 2021. 90% of the surgical procedures included were for malignant condition. A questionnaire was administered to the main surgeon and the assistant in order to know their subjective impressions regarding comfort, ergonomics and satisfaction with the da Vinci robotic system or laparoscopy. The answers were collected on a visual analog scale that scored from 1 to 10. Data were stratified according to the level of experience of the surgeon and complexity of the procedure. To compare the approach with the qualitative variables, the student’s t test or the Mann-Whitney U test for independent samples was used. A value p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Data processing and analysis was carried out using the statistical software IBM SPSS version 25.0.

Results A full questionnaire response was obtained in 384 cases (242 robotic and 142 laparoscopic). With equal difficulty perceived by the main surgeon, robotic surgery was rated as less tiring, more comfortable, and with less limb and back pain than laparoscopic surgery (p<0.001). The surgeon considered that the 3D vision, the articulation of the instrument and the ergonomics offered by robotics were relevant, as well as that robotics was an advance over laparoscopy and open surgery regardless of the level of experience or the complexity of the procedure.

Conclusion Robotic surgery has clear advantages for the surgeon since it increases the degree of satisfaction and comfort and reduces fatigue and discomfort due to the position compared to conventional laparoscopy, regardless surgeon’s experience and complexity of the intervention.

Disclosures Authors declare no conflict of interest.