Abstract: Objective  To evaluate the safety of a snake-shaped flexible robotic arm in thoracic surgery. Methods From March 2022 to June 2022,208 cases of lung surgery were performed under single hole thoracoscopic in our hospital.According to whether this kind of snake-shaped flexible robotic arm was used during the surgery,we divided them into two groups,including 105 cases in the robotic arm group and 103 cases in the control group.The operation time,hospital stay,and incidence of postoperative adverse reactions were counted. Results In the control group,the average operating time was (71.29±30.33) minutes,the hospital stay was (5.86±4.66) days and the incidence of serious complications was 5.8%,while in the robotic arm group the average operating time was （74.31±29.98）minutes,the average hospital stay and the incidence of serious complications were (5.11±2.32) days and 2.9%，respectively.There was no significant difference in operation time,hospital stay and incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups(P>0.05). Conclusion The application of the snakeshaped robotic arm in thoracic surgery is safe and reliable,and will not increase the extra risk in the perioperative period.

Key words: thoracoscopic surgery, robotic arm, minimally invasive