Minimally Invasive Pancreas Surgery

The introduction of laparoscopy in the 1980s has revolutionized the field of complex abdominal surgery. Traditional operations for almost all pancreatic resections and reconstructions have been described and replicated through a laparoscopic approach. Minimally invasive pancreatic surgeries are now well integrated into routine pancreatic resections and reconstructions at high-volume centers, with equivalent rates of mortality compared with open procedures. With the advent of robotic assistance, patients benefit from less intraoperative blood loss, expedited functional recovery, and shorter hospital stays. Meanwhile, surgeons benefit from binocular three-dimensional vision, scaling, stabilization of tremor, reduced operator fatigue, and improved ergonomics from the console-surgeon interface. This chapter will focus on the robotic approach, summarizing the data on the safety, efficacy, and technique of robotic approaches to minimally invasive pancreas surgery for both benign and malignant indications, showcasing the diversity of the platform for complex pancreatic operations.