Can robot-assisted renal transplantation provide higher quality of life
than open renal transplantation during the early postoperative period?
Abstract
Purpose: To investigate the quality of life (QoL) in patients with
end-stage renal disease who underwent open or robot-assisted renal
transplantation (ORT and RART). Materials and Methods: Patients who
underwent ORT and RART at Bakirkoy Sadi Konuk Training and Research
Hospital between June 2016 and December 2018 constituted the target
population of this study. The patient group was divided into two groups
as per the surgical technique (i.e., open vs. robot-assisted).
Demographic data, preoperative and postoperative data of all patients
were collected prospectively. The QoL of the patients was assessed
preoperatively and on the postoperative 30th day. Results: 67 patients
who underwent ORT and 60 patients who underwent RART were included. The
mean patient age and BMI were calculated as 40,9 ± 11,6 years and 24,4 ±
2,9 kg/m2, respectively. While mean total ischemia time was shorter in
the ‘open’ group, incision length, duration of surgical drainage and
hospital stay were shorter in the ‘robot-assisted’ group. The physical
component scores of the QoL questionnaire revealed that postoperative
impairment of quality of life was more significant in the ORT than the
RART. Conclusion: Patients who underwent RART have a higher QoL than the
patients who were treated with ORT as per their self-reported QoL scores
in the early postoperative period. Keywords: End-stage renal disease;
Open renal transplantation; Robot-assisted renal transplantation;
Quality of life