Evaluation of acute postoperative pain management after living donor nephrectomy during the transition from open access to laparoscopic and minimally invasive robotic surgical approach.

Background: Living donor nephrectomies (LDN) at our institution transitioned from open access to laparoscopic and, more recently, to a minimally invasive robotic surgical approach between 2019 and 2022. Concurrently, postoperative analgesia transitioned from regional anesthesia to intravenous patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) and eventually to simple analgesics with additional rescue analgesic agents, as needed, in accordance with individual physicians' preferences. This retrospective study was designed to evaluate the impact of these changes on surgical practice on the analgesic requirements and effectiveness of postoperative pain management.

Acute postoperative pain management after living donor hepatectomy during the transition from an open to minimally invasive surgical approach.

Background: Acute post-surgical pain is a common concern for patients undergoing living donor hepatectomy (LDH), potentially leading to unfavorable outcomes if not treated adequately. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of the transition of surgical techniques from open and laparoscopic to robot-assisted minimally invasive surgical (MIS) approach, and the different types of graft resection, including right, left, and left lateral partial lobectomy (LL), on analgesia requirements during the first two postoperative days.

Methods: A single-center retrospective electronic chart review of all patients who underwent LDH procedures between 2018 and 2020 was performed.