• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer

Log in
  • Search
    • Search All SAGES Content
    • Search SAGES Guidelines
    • Search the Video Library
    • Search the Image Library
    • Search the Abstracts Archive
www.sages.org

SAGES

Reimagining surgical care for a healthier world

  • Home
    • Search
    • SAGES Home
    • SAGES Foundation Home
  • About
    • Awards
    • Who Is SAGES?
    • Leadership
    • Our Mission
    • Advocacy
    • Committees
      • SAGES Board of Governors
      • Officers and Representatives of the Society
      • Committee Chairs and Co-Chairs
      • Committee Rosters
      • SAGES Past Presidents
  • Meetings
    • SAGES NBT Innovation Weekend
    • SAGES Annual Meeting
      • 2026 Scientific Session Call for Abstracts
      • 2026 Emerging Technology Call for Abstracts
    • CME Claim Form
    • SAGES Past, Present, Future, and Related Meeting Information
    • SAGES Related Meetings & Events Calendar
  • Join SAGES!
    • Membership Application
    • Membership Benefits
    • Membership Types
      • Requirements and Applications for Active Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for Affiliate Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for Associate Active Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for Candidate Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements and Applications for International Membership in SAGES
      • Requirements for Medical Student Membership
    • Member Spotlight
    • Give the Gift of SAGES Membership
  • Patients
    • Join the SAGES Patient Partner Network (PPN)
    • Patient Information Brochures
    • Healthy Sooner – Patient Information for Minimally Invasive Surgery
    • Choosing Wisely – An Initiative of the ABIM Foundation
    • All in the Recovery: Colorectal Cancer Alliance
    • Find A SAGES Surgeon
  • Publications
    • Sustainability in Surgical Practice
    • SAGES Stories Podcast
    • SAGES Clinical / Practice / Training Guidelines, Statements, and Standards of Practice
    • Patient Information Brochures
    • Patient Information From SAGES
    • TAVAC – Technology and Value Assessments
    • Surgical Endoscopy and Other Journal Information
    • SAGES Manuals
    • MesSAGES – The SAGES Newsletter
    • COVID-19 Archive
    • Troubleshooting Guides
  • Education
    • Wellness Resources – You Are Not Alone
    • Avoid Opiates After Surgery
    • SAGES Subscription Catalog
    • SAGES TV: Home of SAGES Surgical Videos
    • The SAGES Safe Cholecystectomy Program
    • Masters Program
    • Resident and Fellow Opportunities
      • SAGES Free Resident Webinar Series
      • Fluorescence-Guided Surgery Course for Fellows
      • Fellows’ Career Development Course
      • SAGES Robotics Residents and Fellows Courses
      • MIS Fellows Course
    • SAGES S.M.A.R.T. Enhanced Recovery Program
    • SAGES @ Cine-Med Products
      • SAGES Top 21 Minimally Invasive Procedures Every Practicing Surgeon Should Know
      • SAGES Pearls Step-by-Step
      • SAGES Flexible Endoscopy 101
    • SAGES OR SAFETY Video Activity
  • Opportunities
    • Fellowship Recognition Opportunities
    • SAGES Advanced Flexible Endoscopy Area of Concentrated Training (ACT) SEAL
    • Multi-Society Foregut Fellowship Certification
    • Research Opportunities
    • FLS
    • FES
    • FUSE
    • Jobs Board
    • SAGES Go Global: Global Affairs and Humanitarian Efforts
  • OWLS/FLS
You are here: Home / Abstracts / Need Help with Port-placement in Robot-Assisted Surgery: A Survey Study

Need Help with Port-placement in Robot-Assisted Surgery: A Survey Study

Jinling Wang, PhD, Katherine S Lin, MD, Keith A Watson, MD, Michael L Galloway, DO, Minia Hellan, MD, Caroline G.L. Cao, PhD. Wright State University

Introduction: Robot-assisted laparoscopic surgery has been widely adopted and the number of procedures done with the da Vinci® Surgical System is growing rapidly. Although the advantages of robot-assisted surgery over traditional laparoscopic surgery are obvious, there are several limitations of robot-assisted surgery such as higher costs, and longer setup time. One of the critical steps in setting up the robotic system is port-placement, in which the locations of the ports are selected to ensure adequate visualization of the surgical site, avoid external arm collision, and provide maximal instrument reach. The purpose of this study was to identify the key factors influencing the performance of the port-placement task in robot-assisted surgery, and gather domain expert input about the design of enabling technology for this important task.

Methods and Procedures: An 18-item questionnaire was handed out at the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) 2015 Annual Meeting and at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, OH. Participants had the option to fill out the questionnaire online through Qualtrics (online survey software). Twenty-three hardcopy questionnaires were returned. Sixty-four questionnaires were submitted online but only 22 were complete a completion rate of 34%. In total, 45 questionnaires were analyzed. 42% of the questionnaires were from attending surgeons and 58% from residents.

Results: 47% of the participants listed port-placement as the most challenging task in using the robotic system, followed by learning to use the robotic system (21%), setup (14%), team work (14%), and lack of tactile feedback (4%). The results showed that in the past 3 years, 36% of the attending surgeons and 61% of the residents were involved in a case where the robotic approach was abandoned or convert due to poorly placed ports. Both attending surgeons (53%) and residents (53%) had to work harder at a case due to the poorly placed ports in the last 3 years. Fifty-nine percent (59%) of the participants listed choosing port locations as the most challenging part in the port-placement task. Patients’ body habitus and previous surgery history were the key patient characteristics that could cause difficulty for the port-placement task.

Conclusion: Results confirmed that port placement is a challenging task in using the robotic system. There is overwhelming support from the surgeons surveyed to develop assistive technology for this important task. Therefore, our next step will be to develop a patient-specific port-placement decision aid for robot-assisted laparoscopic surgery.

933

Share this:

  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Pocket
  • Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon

Related



Hours & Info

11300 West Olympic Blvd, Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90064

1-310-437-0544

[email protected]

Monday – Friday
8am to 5pm Pacific Time

Find Us Around the Web!

  • Bluesky
  • X
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • YouTube

Copyright © 2025 · SAGES · All Rights Reserved

Important Links

Healthy Sooner: Patient Information

SAGES Guidelines, Statements, & Standards of Practice

SAGES Manuals