The introduction of robot-assisted surgery is one of the biggest breakthroughs in
surgery, and represents the most significant advancement in minimally invasive surgery of
recent decades. One of the first surgical uses of the robot was in orthopaedics,
neurosurgery and cardiac surgery. However, it's use has now been well recognized in
thoracic surgical procedures ranging from mediastinal tumour resection to complex major
lung resections.
Robotic surgery by the da Vinci Surgical System (Intuitive Surgical, Inc) has been one of
the most commonly used robotic systems in surgery. The robotic system overcomes the
limitations of the standard thoracoscopic approach and allows for precise dissection in a
confined space. These advantages include stable operator-controlled camera, high-
definition 3D magnified view of 10 to 12 times, articulating instruments with seven
degrees of freedom, motion scaling, and tremor filtration.
Recently the Medtronic Hugo™ surgical robotic system has passed the CE mark. This robotic
platform, made up of modular surgical arms on wheeled carts, has started its operation in
human in Latin America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. The Hugo™ system is designed
to provide a lower barrier to entry for hospitals looking to expand their reach in
robotic surgery. Compared to the platform by Intuitive Surgical, Hugo™can be customized
with up to four independent arms, and rolled to different locations in a hospital when
needed.
The investigator's centre is the first robotic surgical centre in Hong Kong since 2005.
Over the years, the investigator have established the centre to be one of the leading
centre in Hong Kong and the region, with involvement in various new development in
thoracic robotic procedures, publications and books, and more recently in robotic
endo-lumenal procedures.
In this study, the investigator evaluate the early surgical outcome and objective
functional outcome of patients undergoing robotic thoracic surgery by the Medtronic Hugo™
surgical robotic system.