Introduction : Even if the advantages of robotic surgery is being more emphasized, robotic cholecystectomy (RC) still has several controversial issues and especially in postoperative pain, there are few studies on its comparative merit compared with standard laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). The aims of this study was evaluate the postoperative pain and clinical outcomes of RC compared with LC.

Methods : We prospectively analyzed data for patients who received RC (3 ports with low incision, n=50) and LC (3 ports with conventional technique, n=50) from February 2016-July 2019. These groups were compared for pain intensity (visual analog scale), analgesic requirement, hospital stay and complications.

Results : Postoperative pain score in RC group was significantly less than those of LC group during early periods (postop 2, 4, 8 hour, p=0.45, 0.28, 0.23). However, there were no pain score differences between two groups during late period (1, 12, 24 hours, p=0.48, 0.66, 0.21). LC group was related to longer hospital stay compared to RC group (2.88 vs. 2.36, p=0.01). Number of patients requiring rescue analgesic doses and intraoperative complications were not significantly different between 2 groups.

Conclusions : This study demonstrates RC with low 3port incision results in reduction in postoperative pain and hospital stay. This study also shows that RC is safe with comparable rate of intraoperative complications. Therefore, RC may be beneficial for patients who expect fast pain relief and early recovery after cholecystectomy.