Robotic Prostatectomy Recovery: Week by Week

What recovery from robotic prostatectomy actually involves

Robotic prostatectomy is a minimally invasive operation in which the prostate is removed through several small incisions using a surgeon-controlled da Vinci system. It is performed under general anaesthesia and the operation itself usually takes 2 to 4 hours. Most people stay in hospital for 1 to 3 nights, and the published recovery time is 2 to 6 weeks. During that time the body is healing internally where the prostate was removed, the small incisions are closing, and bladder control is gradually returning. You can read how the operation is planned and performed on the robotic prostate surgery treatment page at Acibadem.

Recovery has three overlapping parts: the first days in hospital, when pain control, urine drainage and early walking are monitored; the period with a urinary catheter, which is typically kept for a short time and removed at a follow-up visit; and the weeks afterwards, when you gradually return to normal activity while avoiding heavy lifting and strenuous exercise until you are cleared. The stages below describe what most people experience. Your surgeon’s instructions always take precedence over any general timeline.

Recovery timeline: week by week

The first 48 hours

• Pain: Discomfort is usually felt around the small incisions and in the lower abdomen. It is controlled with the painkillers prescribed by the ward team; some people also notice shoulder-tip discomfort from the gas used during keyhole surgery, which typically settles within a day or two.
• Movement: Early walking is part of routine aftercare. Most people are helped out of bed within the first day. Short, frequent walks around the ward are encouraged; lifting anything heavier than a small bag is not.
• Wounds: The incisions are covered with small dressings. Nursing staff check them and will tell you when they can be changed or removed.
• Catheter: A urinary catheter drains the bladder. Staff monitor urine output and will show you how to keep the tube secure and the bag below bladder level.
• Eating and drinking: Fluids are usually offered once you are fully awake, followed by light food when the team is satisfied that your bowel is working.
• Washing: A bed wash or assisted wash is usual on the first day; showering depends on the ward’s advice about your dressings.
• Sleeping: Many people sleep with the head of the bed slightly raised, with the catheter tube positioned so it does not pull.
• Driving: Not permitted.

Week 1

• Pain: Usually improving day by day. Most people move from stronger painkillers to simple ones during this week, as directed at discharge.
• Movement: Discharge typically happens after 1 to 3 nights. Walking several times a day is encouraged; stairs are usually fine taken slowly. Avoid lifting, pushing or pulling anything heavy and avoid straining.
• Wounds: Dressings are usually removed or replaced as instructed. Keep the incisions clean and dry and look for redness or discharge.
• Catheter: Still in place for most people during this week. Follow the instructions you were given on emptying the bag and keeping the area clean.
• Eating and drinking: A normal, light diet is usual. Drink enough fluid to keep urine clear and eat fibre to avoid constipation, which can cause painful straining.
• Washing: Showering is usually allowed once the team confirms the incisions are sealed; pat dry and avoid soaking baths until told otherwise.
• Sleeping: Choose the position that is comfortable while keeping the catheter free from tension.
• Driving: Not while a catheter is in place or while taking strong painkillers.
• Work: Rest at home or in your accommodation; desk-based work from a laptop for short periods is possible for some people if the surgeon agrees.

Week 2

• Pain: Typically mild and needing little or no medication.
• Catheter removal: For most people the catheter is removed at a scheduled follow-up visit within the first couple of weeks. Some urine leakage is common at first; the team will explain pads and pelvic floor exercises.
• Movement: Longer walks are encouraged. Continue to avoid heavy lifting and strenuous activity.
• Wounds: Incisions are usually healed on the surface; stitches, if not dissolvable, are dealt with at follow-up.
• Eating and drinking: Normal diet; keep fluid intake steady rather than restricting it to manage leakage.
• Washing: Normal showering; baths only when cleared.
• Driving: Usually possible after the catheter is out, once you can brake sharply without pain and are not taking sedating medication. Check with your surgeon and insurer.
• Work: People with sedentary jobs often begin a phased return around this point if the surgeon agrees.

Weeks 3 to 6

• Pain: Usually resolved; occasional twinges in the lower abdomen are common.
• Movement and lifting: Activity is increased gradually. Heavy lifting, contact sport, cycling and vigorous exercise remain restricted until your surgeon clears them, which for many people falls within this window.
• Bladder control: Typically improving week by week with regular pelvic floor exercises.
• Wounds: Scars are fading; protect them from sun exposure.
• Eating, washing, sleeping: Normal.
• Work and sport: Most people are back to office work. Physically demanding jobs usually wait until the end of the published 2 to 6 week recovery period and specific clearance.

Months 2 to 3

• Activity: Most restrictions have usually been lifted. Return to sport is guided by how you feel and by your surgeon’s advice.
• Bladder control: Continues to improve for many people; pelvic floor exercises are still worthwhile.
• Follow-up: Remote review with the operating team, including discussion of pathology results where applicable and any planned blood tests.

Months 6 to 12

• Activity: Normal for most people.
• Function: Bladder control and, where nerve-sparing was performed, erectile function can continue to change over this period. Progress is individual and is reviewed at follow-up.
• Monitoring: Scheduled urology follow-up continues as planned by your team.

When it is safe to fly home

For most international patients the return flight is considered once the hospital stay of 1 to 3 nights is over and the early follow-up visit has taken place; for many people this is roughly one to two weeks after surgery. Whether you travel with the catheter still in place or after it has been removed depends on your surgeon’s plan, and this affects the timing. The operating team gives the final clearance.

Timing matters for three reasons. Internal healing and mild swelling take time, and sitting for hours can be uncomfortable early on. Cabin pressure changes can increase bloating and discomfort in the first days after abdominal surgery. Most importantly, long-haul flying after any operation raises the risk of a blood clot in the leg, and the risk is higher in the first weeks after surgery.

A fitness-to-fly assessment is part of the discharge process. It usually covers your wound healing, urine drainage and catheter plan, pain control, mobility, any signs of infection or clot, and whether you need compression stockings or blood-thinning injections for the journey. Practical advice for the flight itself:

• Choose an aisle seat, stand and walk every hour or so, and do ankle and calf exercises while seated.
• Wear compression stockings if advised and drink water regularly, avoiding alcohol.
• Carry your discharge summary, medication list, prescribed painkillers, spare pads or catheter supplies, and any letter about medical equipment in your hand luggage.
• Use a small cushion or folded jacket over the abdomen if the seat belt presses on the incisions.

Warning signs: when to contact your care team immediately

• Fever or shivering.
• Spreading redness, increasing warmth or swelling around any incision.
• Pus or cloudy discharge from a wound, or a wound edge that opens.
• The catheter stops draining, or you cannot pass urine after it has been removed.
• Heavy or increasing blood in the urine, or urine that becomes thick with clots.
• Pain, swelling or tenderness in one calf.
• Sudden breathlessness or chest pain.
• Pain that is not controlled by your prescribed medication, or a swollen, hard abdomen.
• Persistent vomiting or inability to keep fluids down.

Recovering in Türkiye and then at home

After discharge most people stay in accommodation close to the hospital in İstanbul until the first follow-up visit, which is arranged before you leave the ward. This visit usually includes a wound check, review of urine drainage and, when planned, catheter removal. It is also when the fitness-to-fly assessment is completed. Interpreters can be arranged for consultations.

Acibadem’s international patient team coordinates your prior reports and imaging before you arrive, arranges appointments, organises the hospital visit and sets up the follow-up after you return home. That later follow-up is done remotely with the operating team, so before leaving make sure you have your discharge summary, operation note, pathology report when available, medication list, imaging on disc or by secure link, and clear written instructions on wound care, pelvic floor exercises and when to resume activities. Share these documents with your local doctor.

Questions to ask your surgeon before you fly out

• How long will the catheter stay in, and will it be removed before I travel?
• What is my personal earliest flight date, and do I need stockings or injections for the journey?
• Which painkillers should I take home, and for how long?
• When can I shower, bathe, drive and lift normally?
• When will the pathology result be available and how will it be discussed with me?
• What leakage or bleeding is expected, and what should prompt me to seek urgent help?
• When and how will the remote follow-up appointments take place?