Abstract
Robotic hernia repair is an emerging laparoscopic technique born from well-established principles set by open and conventional laparoscopic approaches. Advantages include enhanced 3D visualization, tremorless precision, and improved surgeon ergonomics. The robotic platform also enables exploitation of the individual layers of the abdominal wall for the subsequent placement of mesh in a preperitoneal, retromuscular, and even onlay position, effectively protected from the visceral cavity by the body’s own autologous tissue.
This chapter describes the robotic repair of abdominal wall hernias from a lateral approach for repair of small to medium (<6 cm) as well as larger incisional hernias with mid-abdominal wall defects measuring between 8 and 16 cm wide, requiring component separation technique.