Robotic thoracic surgery: ivor lewis approach

Endoscopic and minimally invasive surgery has revolutionized the interventions for all surgical esophageal disorders. Most surgical trainees in United States graduate with minimal open esophageal surgery experience, especially for elective benign conditions. Transoral stapled Diverticulotomy or Peroral Endoscopic Myotomy (Z-Poem) for Zenker’s Diverticulum, VATS/laparoscopic/robotic diverticulectomy for mid or distal esophageal diverticulum, Peroral endoscopic myotomy or robotic Heller Myotomy for achalasia, endoscopic or minimally invasive options for GERD and hiatal hernia have transformed the way modern esophageal surgery is performed. Similarly, minimally invasive or robotic assisted esophagectomy (MIE or RAMIE) is replacing the traditional open esophageal resection. The global rise in the adoption of endoscopic and minimally invasive techniques for esophageal surgery has led to increasing acceptance of these interventions for esophageal conditions which has translated into better patient outcomes. Historically, these procedures were associated with unacceptable morbidities and were performed reluctantly for benign conditions.

In this focused series of the Shanghai Chest, world leaders in minimally invasive esophageal surgery have provided an update on these common esophageal procedures to elucidate the indications and techniques for the readers.

Acknowledgments

Funding: None.

Footnote

Provenance and Peer Review: This article was commissioned by the editorial office, Shanghai Chest for the series “Minimally Invasive Esophageal Surgery”. The article did not undergo external peer review.

Conflicts of Interest: The author has completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form (available at http://dx.doi.org/10.21037/shc-2021-02). GA serves as an unpaid editorial board member of Shanghai Chest from Jun 2019 to May 2021 and as the unpaid Guest Editor of the series. The author has no other conflicts of interest to declare.

Ethical Statement: The author is accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.

Open Access Statement: This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), which permits the non-commercial replication and distribution of the article with the strict proviso that no changes or edits are made and the original work is properly cited (including links to both the formal publication through the relevant DOI and the license). See: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.

Ghulam Abbas