Perineal hernia repair after extralevator abdominoperineal excision, how we do it (PERineal Laparoscopic Sling: PERLS Technique).

PURPOSE: Recent shift to radical extralevator abdominoperineal excision (ELAPE) approach has seen an increased incidence of post-operative perineal hernia. However, there is no standardised surgical approach for its repair. The aim of this study was to report intra and post-operative results of the perineal hernia repair by the novel trans-abdominal PERineal Laparoscopic Sling (PERLS) Technique in patients who developed post-operative perineal hernia following ELAPE. METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of consecutive patients who underwent perineal hernia repair by laparoscopic PERLS approach. All patients had undergone ELAPE with vertical rectus abdominis muscle (VRAM) flap reconstruction during the index surgery for treatment of rectal cancer. Post-operative complications, operative time, conversion rate to open surgery and incidence of recurrent perineal hernia were noted. RESULTS: Seven patients were operated for perineal hernia. The mean operative time was 105 min (range: 87 to 131 min). One case needed conversion to the open approach. The incidence of early complications was 57.1% including just single Clavien-Dindo I and two Clavien-Dindo II complications, while recurrence rate was 14.3%. CONCLUSION: PERLS perineal hernia repair is safe, performed in convenient time duration (mean = 105 min) and has reasonably less recurrence rate.

Comparison of FreeHand® robot-assisted with human-assisted laparoscopic fundoplication.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the safety, operative time and feasibilty of FreeHand® robot (FreeHand Ltd, Guildford, United Kingdom) with manual camera control approach for Laparoscopic Fundoplication. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A case control study was performed for patients undergoing laparoscopic fundoplication. Primary outcome was operative time; secondary outcomes included length of stay, post-operative morbidity, symptoms at first follow-up and total post-operative out-patient visits. RESULTS: Forty-four patients underwent laparoscopic fundoplication between January 2014 and June 2016. Twenty-six (59%) underwent conventional human-assisted fundoplication while 18 (41%) had FreeHand® robot assisted procedures. Mean operative time for conventional laparoscopic fundoplication was 165 min compared with 129 min in the robot-assisted group, saving 36 min (p < .001).The median length of stay was 1.5 days in the robot-assisted as compared to two days in the conventional group. Sixteen percent of robot-assisted as opposed to 30% of conventional group patients experienced complications. There was no 30-day mortality. Two patients required more than one post-operative clinic visit in robot-assisted against six in conventional group. CONCLUSION: Robot-assisted fundoplication is safe, feasible and reduces operative time. Furthermore, this negates need of assistant. Mean operative time for robot-assisted fundoplication was 36 min less than for conventional fundoplication. Advantages also include fewer adverse events, shorter length of stay and less post-operative clinic visits.