Urological robotic surgery: preliminary experience with the Zeus system.

Abstract  Aim:  We performed robotic or robotically-assisted laparoscopic surgery for urological diseases, and evaluated the efficacy and safety of this surgery. Methods:  Between November 2003 and June 2004, we performed laparoscopic surgery with the Zeus system in eight cases. Three adrenalectomy cases of cortical adenoma presenting with Cushing syndrome and primary aldosteronism, and two cases of nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma in dialyzed patients were performed solely with Zeus. In two cases of ureteral stenosis, Zeus was used for ureteral anastomosis after partial ureterectomy by manual laparoscopy. In one prostatectomy case, vesico-urethral anastomosis was performed with Zeus after extraperitoneal prostatectomy by manual laparoscopy. Results:  All of the cases were successfully treated without any complications during or after operation. All patients were discharged from hospital within 12 days postoperatively. As for adrenalectomy, nephrectomy and pyeloplasty, this may be the first report in Japan. Conclusions:  Our preliminary experiences suggest that such a robot system, which is being developed day by day, might become more beneficial in future in urological laparoscopic surgery.