Side-docking in robotic-assisted gynaecologic cancer surgery.

Background: The majority of previous experience with the robotic-assisted laparoscopic technique for gynaecological procedures has utilized a method in which the robot is centrally located (CD) between the patient's legs.

Methods: Twelve consecutive patients undergoing robotic-assisted procedures for gynaecological malignancies were positioned in a side-docking (SD) fashion, in which the robot is positioned lateral to the patient. The relevant clinical parameters were collected and compared to the previous 12 patients undergoing surgery using the conventional, centre-docking (CD) technique.