Robotic surgery has many benefits to the patients, some of these benefits include a comparatively shorter recovery time, decreased blood loss, etc. The prostate gland is a walnut-sized gland located near the bladder and wraps around the urethra. Cancer of the prostate is a very common cancer in men, radical prostatectomy is a procedure performed in which the prostate gland, surrounding tissue, and seminal vesicles are removed. Depending on the spread of cancer they might also remove some of the lymph nodes around it.
What are the benefits of having robotic prostate surgery?
This surgery has a whole lot of benefits of robotic prostate surgery like
- A faster recovery time, which means less time in hospital.
- Decreased blood loss.
- Better quality of life after surgery, which means one can get back to feeling normal again.
- Less pain.
Does the surgery impact the nerves?
There are nerves and blood vessels that sit around the prostate. Before robotic prostate surgery, those nerves and blood vessels have been severed or damaged while performing a more traditional surgery. Robotic surgery gives the surgeons a chance to visualize those nerves and once they visualize the nerves, they can be spared, allowing a man to keep his quality life and regain his erections after the surgery.
Is it normal to be incontinent after a prostatectomy?
Continence or urinary control rates after a robotic surgery are well above 93%. Most men will regain their urinary control within about 2-12 weeks after the surgery. N
Some of the factors that can influence this are;
- Age of a person.
- Previous urinary health.
- Overall prostate size.
There are certain things recommended by doctors to improve the condition after surgery. A few of them are Kegel exercises both before and after the surgery, timed voiding or urination, and avoiding caffeine or alcohol consumption.
Is erectile dysfunction a possibility?
This is dependent on many factors. It is dependent on age, function before surgery as well as the nerves spare preservation procedure that one had. After surgery with the robotic prostatectomy, all men will be offered erectile function rehabilitation. This rehabilitation program has been developed by some key experts to allow men to regain their sexual function after robotic radical prostatectomy.
How long do the scars exist?
After robotic surgery, they will have only 5-6 small incisions from across the abdomen. It is completely more of a traditional surgery where they perform one large mid-line incision on the lower portion of the abdomen. What this translates to is basically less blood loss, reduced risk of infection, quicker healing, and minimal pain. This means getting home sooner and less time at the hospital.
How long are the patients required to stay after surgery?
After the robotic prostate surgery, the person will be admitted for an overnight observation usually to ask if men have pain after surgery and about 1 in 10 men has pain after surgery. 80% of the men don’t need to be on a pain killer. The patients are discharged the next day with a catheter. The drain in place will be removed prior to the discharge. The patients are subjected to a liquid diet and will regain malfunction very soon after surgery.
Robotic prostate surgery optimizes outcomes in terms of sexual function, urinary continence as well as minimizing trauma or any complications. The benefits of robotic surgery are significant, they outweigh open surgery. Open surgery can be taking any turn and has a risk of damaging the nerves. Before going to the surgery, one has to consider the doctor and the team and look into how long they have been doing this for and the risks associated with it.
