The following is a summary of “Efficacy and Safety of Robot-assisted AUS Implantation Surgery in Treating Severe Stress Urinary Incontinence: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis,” published in the JANUARY 2023 issue of Urology by Yuanzhuo, et al.
For a systematic literature review, researchers sought to assess the safety and effectiveness of robot-assisted artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) implantation surgery for severe stress urinary incontinence (SUI) in female patients.
They conducted a comprehensive search in multiple databases, including PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science Clarivate, Cochrane library, Medicine, and clinicaltrials.gov, from inception to March 2022. A total of 9 studies, including 157 participants, were included in the final analysis. Of these studies, 8 were retrospective, and 1 was prospective, with moderate and high evidence levels.
The pooled results showed that robot-assisted AUS implantation treatment had an excellent continence rate (P = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.76-0.89) but a high complication rate, including intraoperative vaginal and bladder injury and postoperative acute urinary retention (Intraoperation: 0.21, 95% CI: 0.11-0.34; Postoperation: 0.20, 95% CI: 0.12-0.29). In addition, subgroup analysis of the two approaches showed that the traditional surgical approach had better efficacy and safety than the posterior approach.
In conclusion, the study’s results suggested that robot-assisted AUS implantation surgery can improve urinary continence in SUI patients, but it is associated with high complication rates. More evidence from prospective studies was needed to guide clinical practice.
Reference: goldjournal.net/article/S0090-4295(22)00825-1/fulltext