A new study just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association has raised concerns that minimally invasive surgery to remove the prostate may be associated with certain increased long term complications when compared to standard prostatectomy.
The study found that minimally invasive techniques, such as those used in laparoscopic or robot-assisted surgeries, were associated with fewer short term complications such as pneumonia, but had higher rates of long term complications such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction.
The study found that both minimally invasive and standard prostate surgeries resulted in the same rates of cancer control.
Currently, there is a broad trend in prostate surgery toward the use of minimally invasive techniques, but this study may curtail that somewhat.
