ArticleCureus2026
Early Learning Curve of a Novice Surgeon in Robot-Assisted Pulmonary Resection: Assessment Using the Robot-Assisted Thoracic Surgery Assessment Tool (RATSAT), Derived From the Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery Assessment Tool (VATSAT).
Article in Cureus, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objective The primary objective was to delineate the early learning trajectory of a junior thoracic surgeon with limited prior supervised exposure to video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy while performing robot-assisted pulmonary resection. The secondary objective was to evaluate technical proficiency, subjective performance, and cognitive workload across the first 15 consecutive supervised cases using validated assessment tools, including the Robot-Assisted Thoracic Surgery Assessment Tool (RATSAT), Surgery Task Load Index (SURG-TLX), and Risk-Adjusted Cumulative Sum (RA-CUSUM) analysis. Methodology In this single-surgeon observational study conducted with retrospective IRB approval, a single junior thoracic surgeon with less than four years of post-residency experience and limited prior exposure to supervised VATS lobectomy cases performed 15 consecutive robot-assisted pulmonary resections under the supervision of an expert surgeon. We evaluated technical performance using the RATSAT, cognitive workload using the SURG-TLX, and operative time through RA-CUSUM analysis. Performance progression and interrater consistency were assessed. Results The trainees' and supervisors' RATSAT scores (31.0 ± 3.8 vs. 30.3 ± 3.9) showed positive correlations with case number (
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