Keck School Faculty

Rene Sotelo MD is one of the most expert & experienced laparoscopic/robotic surgeons internationally. Hailing from Latin America, he is a pioneer in robotic surgery for complex urinary fistulae in females and males, benign prostate enlargement & inguinal lymph node dissection for cancer. He has helped develop the novel concepts of single-port “belly-button” and natural orifice surgery. Professor Sotelo’s experience with advanced robotic & laparoscopic surgery exceeds 2,300 personal cases, making him amongst the most experienced in the world.

Background
- Professor and Chairman, Department of Urology, Robotic and Minimally Invasive Surgery, Caracas, Venezuela (2004-2015)
President, Latin American Society of Minimally Invasive Surgery in Urology (2006-2008)

- Director, Office of Laparoscopy & Robotic Surgery, Confederación Americana de Urología (CAU) (2007-2014)

- Editor, Journal Urología Panamericana, the official Journal of Confederación Americana de Urología (CAU) (1999-2004)

- Serves on the editorial boards of European Urology, British Journal of Urology International and Journal of Robotic Surgery

- Invited visiting professor to 35 universities in 19 countries internationally, where he has demonstrated advanced robotic & laparoscopic techniques at live surgical symposia

- Trained over 67 post-graduate fellows from 14 countries in robotic & laparoscopic urology

- Listed amongst “America’s Top Urologists” by Consumers Research Council

Research
Published more than 50 peer reviewed scientific papers and 28 chapters in major urology books
Published 3 text-books; serves on the editorial board of 3 urologic journals

Awards
Professor Sotelo’s urologic achievements are considerable. He has won over 23 awards from scientific and government organizations worldwide, including American Urological Association, European Association of Urology, Societé Internationale Urologie, European Robotic Urological Society, Confederación Americana de Urología and others.