[Needle Lost during Robot-Assisted Laparoscopic Radical Prostatectomy : A Case Report]

A 66-year-old man, who presented with prostate cancer, underwent robot-assisted laparoscopic radical prostatectomy. During surgery, a suture needle was lost after an assistant surgeon removed it from the AirSeal® access port. We were not able to find the needle using a portable radiograph with no contrast optimization. After disassembling the device, the needle was found in the groove of the port top. It should be acknowledged that the needle can become stuck in the AirSeal® port, even though it does not have a valve structure. An X-ray radiograph, with an appropriate gradation setting could be useful to retrieve suture needles.