Robotic rectal cancer surgery with da Vinci’s new force feedback technology shows promise for reducing tissue stress during procedures.

• Mean force during static retraction dropped significantly with higher feedback sensitivity (off: 3.07 n, low: 2.58 n, medium: 2.03 n; p = 0.039).
• Median maximum force in dynamic retraction also decreased with increased sensitivity (off: 36.19 n, low: 18.82 n, medium: 10.06 n; p = 0.033).

No tissue trauma complications were reported during the study, suggesting enhanced patient safety.