OBJECTIVE: Transoral robotic surgery is well established in the treatment paradigm of oropharyngeal pathology. The Versius Surgical System (CMR Surgical) is a robotic platform in clinical use in multiple specialities but is currently untested in the head and neck. This study utilises the IDEAL framework of surgical innovation to prospectively evaluate and report a first in human clinical experience and single centre case series of transoral robotic surgery (TORS) with Versius.
METHODS: Following IDEAL framework stages 1 and 2a, the study evaluated Versius to perform first in human TORS before transitioning from benign to malignant cases. Iterative adjustments were made to system setup, instrumentation, and technique, recorded in accordance with IDEAL recommendations. Evaluation criteria included successful procedure completion, setup time, operative time, complications, and subjective impressions. Further evaluation of the system to perform four-arm surgery was conducted.
RESULTS: 30 TORS procedures were successfully completed (15 benign, 15 malignant) without intraoperative complication or conversion to open surgery. Setup time significantly decreased over the study period. Instrumentation challenges were identified, urging the need for TORS-specific instruments. The study introduced four-arm surgery, showcasing Versius\' unique capabilities, although limitations in distal access were observed.
CONCLUSIONS: TORS is feasible with the Versius Surgical System. The development of TORS-specific instruments would benefit performance and wider adoption of the system. 4-arm surgery is possible however further evaluation is required. Multicentre evaluation (IDEAL stage 2b) is recommended.

The da Vinci single-port (SP) is utilized in transoral robotic surgery (TORS) procedures for malignant oropharyngeal tumors. We report a case utilizing the da Vinci SP in TORS for sialolith removal.
A 75-year-old male with chronic right submandibular gland (SMG) sialadenitis underwent combined da Vinci SP TORS approach with sialendoscopy for multiple SMG sialoliths. We were unable to find a previous report of using the da Vinci SP in TORS for SMG sialolith removal.
The da Vinci SP has been utilized in a combined TORS approach with sialendoscopy for SMG sialolith removal. The da Vinci SP\'s additional arm provides improved retraction, enabling optimal visualization, dissection, and preservation of important structures such as the lingual nerve.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to identify preoperative patient characteristics associated with the incidence of positive surgical margins or lymph node extracapsular extension (ECE), which necessitate adjuvant chemoradiation after transoral robotic surgery (TORS).
METHODS: We conducted a single institution retrospective study of 34 consecutive patients with primary oropharyngeal cancer who underwent TORS. All imaging was reviewed by a single neuroradiologist. Surgical margins and ECE status were determined by a single head and neck pathologist. Associations of preoperative patient characteristics with positive surgical margins and lymph node ECE were examined using univariate analysis. Independent predictors of these outcomes were determined using logistic regression.
RESULTS: Preoperatively, the majority of patients had early-stage disease (7 cT1 and 21 cT2; 10 cN0). Positive margins occurred in 4 (12 %) patients. A clinically positive lymph node was seen in 23 (68 %) patients. Neck dissection was performed in 29 (85 %) patients, among whom 19 had a pathologically positive lymph node and 15 had nodal ECE. Logistic regression showed that larger preoperative lymph node size was an independent predictor of ECE (odds ratio, 13.32 [95 % CI, 1.46-121.43]). Among the 21 patients with a clinically positive lymph node who underwent neck dissection, ECE was present more often in patients with a preoperative node size ≥ 3.0 vs. < 3.0 cm (92 % vs. 44 %, P = 0.046). There was no patient characteristic associated with positive margins.
CONCLUSIONS: Patients with a larger preoperative lymph node appear more likely to have ECE, and thus be treated with chemoradiation after TORS, with a potentially higher rate of toxicity. Lymph node size should be taken into account when deciding upon treatment approaches. Further research is needed to validate these results.

Surgical management is increasingly preferred in human papilloma-related oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. Robotic surgery has a different role to play in oropharyngeal salivary origin tumors, where surgery is the primary essential modality. This modality may be used for better access to the oropharynx, avoiding a lip split approach with mandibulotomy. The organ preservation approach such as in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma, with nonsurgical modalities like chemoradiotherapy, is not preferred in such cancers, as in the present case. In this context, robot-assisted surgery helps in reducing the morbidity by avoiding the mandibulotomy.

BACKGROUND: Cervical spondylodiscitis is a rare but severe complication of pharyngeal surgery.
METHODS: This multicenter retrospective study reported all patients in the database of the French head and neck tumor study group (GETTEC) affected by cervical spondylodiscitis after transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for malignant pharyngeal tumor from January 2010 to January 2017.
OBJECTIVE: To describe cases of post-TORS cervical spondylodiscitis, identify alarm signs, and determine optimal management of these potentially lethal complications.
RESULTS: Seven patients from 6 centers were included. Carcinomas were located in the posterior pharyngeal wall. Tumor stage was T1 or T2. All patients had risk factors for spondylodiscitis. Mean time to diagnosis was 12.6days. The interval between surgery and spondylodiscitis diagnosis ranged from 20days to 4.5months, for a mean 2.1months. The most common symptom was neck pain (87%). Infections were polymicrobial; micro-organisms were isolated in 5 cases and managed by intravenous antibiotics, associated to medullary decompression surgery in 3 cases. Follow-up found favorable progression in 4 cases, and 3 deaths (mortality, 43%).
CONCLUSIONS: This French multicenter study found elevated mortality in post-TORS spondylodiscitis, even in case of limited resection. Surgeons must be aware of this complication and alerted by persistent neck pain, fever, asthenia, impaired or delayed posterior pharyngeal wall wound healing or elevation of inflammatory markers. MRI is the most effective diagnostic radiological examination.

OBJECTIVE: To examine pain after Transoral Robotic Surgery (TORS) for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) versus traditional bilateral tonsillectomy in adults.
METHODS: Pain evolvement was assessed in a prospective case-control design of 16 consecutive patients treated with TORS for early stage OPSCC versus 12 patients, who underwent bilateral tonsillectomy on suspicion of malignant disease. The TORS group received an optimized analgesia regime of preoperative oral celecoxib and gabapentin, intra- and postoperative high-dose intravenous dexamethasone, and regular postoperative oral contalgin, gabapentin, celecoxib, paracetamol and rescue morphine. The tonsillectomy group received the departmental standard analgesia regime with low-dose preoperative oral dexamethasone, celecoxib and paracetamol. Postoperative regular analgesia consisted of oral NSAID and paracetamol with weak opioids prescribed as required. Pain intensity was recorded at rest and during swallowing twice a day.
RESULTS: The median pain intensity on postoperative day (POD) 1-4 was 2 in the TORS group versus 4.5 in the tonsillectomy group. From POD 5-10 median pain intensity was 3.5 and 4, respectively. The median length of stay was 5 days in the TORS group and less than 24 hours in the tonsillectomy group.
CONCLUSIONS: With an optimized analgesia regime TORS for OPSCC can be performed with postoperative pain levels comparable to bilateral tonsillectomy in adults.