Those surgeons that have put in the time to master the robotic skills necessary to perform a robotic hernia repair, quickly recognize the technical superiority of it. Those patients who have had both an open and a robotic hernia repair, are amazed at the difference. However, those who have not had a direct experience rely on secondary information, and reading various opinions can certainly be confusing. While I encourage my patients to explore their condition and surgical options on-line, always check the source and ask yourself if the author seems to have first hand knowledge and expertise to back up their opinion. Those, who perform the surgery routinely, and direct patient reports are always best.
In the meantime, scientific data, which takes years to collect, will eventually put most such controversies to rest by creating a new Gold Standard of Care (the top achiever to which others are later compared). That requires not only strong scientific support, but adoption of the procedure by most surgeons. Robotic hernia repair is quickly approaching that goal.
Learn more about the ongoing trial:
https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02715622
Read data from a completed study
Dr. Linda Bergal 