Robotic-assisted Thoracic Surgery: Currently Available Standard Systems and Future Developments

The trend towards performing robotic-assisted operations in thoracic surgery has been increasing in the last decade. The well-known advantages of video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) in comparison to the open approach are also valid for robotic surgery, with the addition of a 3 D-view camera, wristed instrumentation, and an ergonomic console. The application of robotic technology to thoracic surgical procedures has been shown to be safe and possibly with equivalent oncological outcomes. The Da Vinci Surgical System became the first robotic surgical platform that was commercially available. Several other robotic systems have entered the market in recent years. The current robot systems differ in structure and application. The aim of this review is to describe the current systems in robotic-assisted thoracic surgery (RATS), as well as future developments in RATS.