Laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) adrenalectomy and partial nephrectomy: current Italian experience with two challenging surgical procedures

Abstract

Since its initial clinical use in urology, there has been an increasing enthusiasm and a growing interest for laparoendoscopic single-site surgery (LESS). Several clinical series have been reported with an estimated cumulative clinical experience of more than four hundred so far. Nowadays, virtually all extirpative and reconstructive urological procedures have been described and shown to be feasible and safe, including advanced reconstructive procedures and major extirpative ones. Among them, adrenalectomy and partial nephrectomy represent highly complex procedures. Initial clinical data have been recently reported to test the safety and efficacy of these interventions in selected patients. Herein, we describe our initial cases of unclamp LESS partial nephrectomy and adrenalectomy. In our opinion, LESS is an established technique within the field of minimally invasive surgery. Even if further studies are needed to demonstrate its actual benefits, early clinical outcomes are encouraging and LESS might represent the way to go in minimally invasive urological surgery.