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@ARTICLE{Krger:305419,
author = {J. Kröger and N. Jorek and A. Seitel$^*$ and L. Mayer$^*$
and G. A. Salg and N. Crnovrsanin and F. Pianka and T.
Pausch and L. Maier-Hein$^*$ and C. Michalski and H.
Nienhüser},
title = {{A}pplication of artificial intelligence in esophageal
surgery: a systematic review.},
journal = {Journal of robotic surgery},
volume = {19},
number = {1},
issn = {1863-2483},
address = {London},
publisher = {Springer},
reportid = {DKFZ-2025-02148},
pages = {694},
year = {2025},
abstract = {The aim of this systematic review was to summarize and
analyze the available literature on the application of
artificial intelligence systems in esophageal surgery,
focusing on anatomy recognition, instrument detection, and
surgical phase recognition. Esophageal cancer poses a
significant global health challenge, ranking as the seventh
most common cancer worldwide. Esophagectomy is the only
curative treatment for non-metastatic esophageal cancer.
While the introduction of minimally invasive esophagectomy
and later robot-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy
significantly improved surgical precision and patient
outcome, this development promoted a transition to
increasing digitalization and video processing. Subsequently
facilitating the integration of artificial intelligence is a
promising tool in the enhancement of esophageal surgery. A
systematic search was conducted following the PRISMA
guidelines in the Medline and Web of Science databases.
Studies published between January 2019 and June 2025
published in English and without restrictions to study type
were included. Inclusion criteria focused on artificial
intelligence-based anatomy recognition, instrument
recognition, and phase recognition in esophageal surgery.
Studies addressing preoperative and postoperative risk
prediction or artificial intelligence applications not
directly related to the surgical procedure were excluded.
The systematic literature search yielded 7063 results. After
screening, we identified six studies examining artificial
intelligence applications in esophagectomy focusing on
anatomy, instrument, and phase recognition. Artificial
intelligence can be a useful tool-especially for
intraoperative anatomy recognition-reaching detection rates
comparable to trained surgeons in real time as seen in one
study, reaching a Dice coefficient of 0.58, which was close
to that of an expert esophageal surgeon (0.62) and
significantly higher than the general surgeon (0.47, p=
0.0019). Due to the heterogeneity of study aims, utilized
algorithms and outcome measures direct comparison between
studies was not feasible. Artificial intelligence has
demonstrated significant potential in enhancing esophageal
surgery by improving anatomical recognition and optimizing
surgical workflow. Despite these advancements, challenges
remain in standardizing datasets, refinement of annotation
methodologies, and seamless integration into real-time
surgical navigation systems. To ensure clinical
applicability, future research should focus on large-scale
validation and prospective clinical trials to establish
artificial intelligence's clinical utility and safety in
minimally invasive esophagectomy.},
subtyp = {Review Article},
keywords = {Humans / Artificial Intelligence / Esophagectomy: methods /
Esophageal Neoplasms: surgery / Robotic Surgical Procedures:
methods / Esophagus: surgery / Esophagus: anatomy $\&$
histology / Artificial intelligence (Other) / Esophageal
surgery (Other) / Machine learning (Other) / Minimally
invasive surgery (Other)},
cin = {E130},
ddc = {610},
cid = {I:(DE-He78)E130-20160331},
pnm = {315 - Bildgebung und Radioonkologie (POF4-315)},
pid = {G:(DE-HGF)POF4-315},
typ = {PUB:(DE-HGF)16},
pubmed = {pmid:41099978},
doi = {10.1007/s11701-025-02854-9},
url = {https://inrepo02.dkfz.de/record/305419},
}