Pediatric minimally invasive surgery in Africa: limitations and current situation

The second largest and most populous continent, with an exploding pediatric population, Africa has an overwhelming burden on its very limited pediatric surgical services. In an international environment of progressively advancing endoscopic and robotic surgical techniques, the authors focus on the current role of endoscopic surgery on the continent and explore the potential reasons for its delayed acceptance and implementation. They proceed to document the spectrum of what is available and, using their “African experience,” expand on financially viable models of further rolling out these techniques, including discussion around suitable training models for surgeons and their teams.