Publications by authors named "Bravi C"

Introduction: Southern Africa has been inhabited by hunter-gatherers for at least 20,000 years and has received diverse immigration flows in the last 2000 years. The original inhabitants have interacted with the pastoralist migrants from Eastern Africa (∼2000 ybp), followed by the southern Bantu migration arriving some 1000 ybp, and more recently with the European and Asian settlers after the 17th century. Many of the original Khoekhoe and San inhabitants have either become extinct or have disappeared through admixture in South Africa (SA), in a sex-biased manner involving KhoeSan women.

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Objectives: To report the first cases of surgical staging for apparently early-stage endometrial cancer performed using the Versius® next-generation robotic surgical system (Cambridge Medical Robots [CMR] Surgical, Cambridge, UK).

Design: Prospective case series. Participants/Materials: Women who underwent surgical staging, including total hysterectomy, bilateral adnexectomy, and sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy, for apparently early-stage endometrial cancer using the Versius® next-generation robotic surgical system (CMR Surgical, Cambridge, UK).

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to assess the outcomes of robot-assisted radical cystectomy (RARC) with intracorporeal orthotopic neobladder in women with bladder cancer, specifically focusing on functionality, cancer results, and complications.
  • The research involved 146 female patients, revealing that about half underwent pelvic organ-preserving procedures, achieving overall daytime and nighttime continence rates of 54% and 53%.
  • The findings concluded that RARC with orthotopic neobladder offers good functional outcomes, with pelvic organ preservation improving urinary continence while maintaining cancer safety.
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  • In a study of 4011 patients who had unilateral cT1a-b renal mass treated with partial nephrectomy, researchers aimed to explore how a surgeon's experience affects surgical outcomes, specifically acute kidney injury (AKI) and kidney function a year post-surgery.
  • Previously, it was known that complications and ischemia times improved with surgeon experience, but there was limited data on long-term kidney function.
  • The findings revealed no significant association between surgical experience and AKI or recovery of kidney function in either laparoscopic or robot-assisted techniques, suggesting other factors may play a more crucial role in these outcomes.
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Current guidelines recommend radical nephroureterectomy with bladder cuff excision as the standard surgical treatment for high-risk upper tract urothelial carcinoma (UTUC). While large evidence is available regarding open and laparoscopic nephroureterectomy, data focusing on robotic nephroureterectomy (RNU) in UTUC are mostly limited with mixed results, especially in locally advanced disease. In light of the recent introduction of new robotic platforms, it is of utmost importance to further investigate oncologic outcomes associated with RNU.

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Article Synopsis
  • Deterioration of kidney function can lead to higher mortality rates, and it's unclear how different surgical options (partial nephrectomy [PN] vs. radical nephrectomy [RN]) for large renal masses impact long-term kidney health.
  • A study analyzing data from 23 institutions showed that patients undergoing PN experienced significantly lower rates of acute kidney injury (AKI) and better recovery of kidney function at one year compared to those undergoing RN.
  • The findings suggest that avoiding RN, when possible, is beneficial for preserving kidney function and reducing the risk of serious complications related to kidney health after surgery.
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Background: To date, the benefit of image guidance during robot-assisted surgery (IGS) is an object of debate. The current study aims to address the quality of the contemporary body of literature concerning IGS in robotic surgery throughout different surgical specialties.

Methods: A systematic review of all English-language articles on IGS, from January 2013 to March 2023, was conducted using PubMed, Cochrane library's Central, EMBASE, MEDLINE, and Scopus databases.

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Purpose: To access the current scenario of robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy training in multiple centers worldwide.

Methods: We created a multiple-choice questionnaire assessing all details of robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy training with 41 questions divided into three different categories (responder demography, surgical steps, and responder experience). The questionnaire was created and disseminated using the "Google Docs" platform.

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In February 2021 Medtronic (Minneapolis, MN) launched the HUGO™ Robot-Assisted Surgery (RAS) System in the global market. The aim of the current study is to describe the first case series and the optimal setup of robot-assisted pyeloplasty procedure, performed with HUGO RAS system in a tertiary referral robotic center. Data from consecutive patients who underwent robot-assisted pyeloplasty at Onze-Lieve-Vrouwziekenhuis Hospital (Aalst, Belgium) were recorded.

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Background: Positive surgical margins (PSMs) are frequent in patients undergoing radical prostatectomy (RP). The impact of PSMs on cancer-specific (CSM) and overall (OM) mortality has not yet been proved definitively.

Objective: To evaluate whether the presence and the features of PSMs were associated with CSM and OM in patients who underwent robotic-assisted RP.

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Background: Multiple and heterogeneous techniques have been described for orthotopic neobladder (ONB) reconstruction after robot-assisted radical cystectomy. Nonetheless, a systematic assessment of all the available options is lacking.

Objective: To provide the first comprehensive step-by-step description of all the available techniques for robotic intracorporeal ONB together with individual intraoperative, perioperative and functional outcomes based on a systematic review of the literature.

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Background: The learning curve for robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) remains controversial, with prior studies showing that, in contrast with evidence on open and laparoscopic radical prostatectomy, biochemical recurrence rates of experienced versus inexperienced surgeons did not differ.

Objective: To characterize the learning curve for positive surgical margins (PSMs) after RARP.

Design, Setting, And Participants: We analyzed the data of 13 090 patients with prostate cancer undergoing RARP by one of 74 surgeons from ten institutions in Europe and North America between 2003 and 2022.

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Objective: In the last years, robotic surgery was introduced in several different settings with good perioperative results. However, its role in the management of adrenal masses is still debated. In order to provide a contribution to this field, we described our step-by-step technique for robotic adrenalectomy (RA) and related modifications according to the type of adrenal mass treated.

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Purpose: In the emerging field of robotics, only few studies investigated the transition between different robotic platforms in terms of surgical outcomes. We aimed at assessing surgical outcomes of patients receiving robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP) and robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN) at a high-volume robotic center during the transition from Si to Xi Da Vinci surgical systems.

Methods: We analyzed data of 1884 patients undergoing RARP (n = 1437, 76%) and RAPN (n = 447, 24%) at OLV hospital (Aalst, Belgium) between 2011 and 2021.

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Purpose: Salvage robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy (S-RARP) has gained prominence in recent years for treating patients with cancer recurrence following non-surgical treatments of Prostate Cancer. We conducted a systematic literature review to evaluate the role and outcomes of S-RARP over the past decade.

Material And Methods: A systematic review was conducted, encompassing articles published between January 1st, 2013, and June 1st, 2023, on S-RARP outcomes.

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Background: We aimed to compare the outcomes of Robot-assisted sacrocolpopexy (RASC) performed using the novel HUGO Robot-Assisted Surgery (RAS) System with the Da Vinci Xi surgical system.

Methods: Data from 38 women undergoing RASC for a ≥ 2-grade pelvic organ prolapse were collected (2021-2023).

Results: Overall, 23 (60.

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Background: Robot-Assisted Simple Prostatectomy (RASP) has emerged as a promising alternative in the treatment of benign prostatic obstruction (BPO). However, there is currently a lack of comparative studies evaluating different robotic platforms for performing RASP. Therefore, we aimed to compare perioperative and functional outcomes of RASP performed using the HUGO™ RAS System versus the DaVinci® Xi System.

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Background: Evidence on long-term oncological efficacy is available only for open radical prostatectomy but remains scarce for robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP).

Objective: To validate the long-term survival rates after RARP and provide stratified outcomes based on contemporary prostate cancer (PCa) risk-stratification tools.

Design, Setting, And Participants: A retrospective analysis of the European Association of Urology (EAU) Robotic Urology Section Scientific Working Group international multicenter database for RARP was performed.

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