Gone are the days when a robot in the operating
room would only be seen in futuristic fiction. At
Winthrop-University Hospital, surgeons are using
the ultra-high-tech daVinci Si HD Surgical System
to perform minimally invasive surgeries with
unprecedented precision.
Winthrop surgeons (l.-r.) Eva Chalas, MD, Chief of Gynecologic Oncology and
Director of Clinical Cancer Services; Collin Brathwaite, MD, Chief of the Division
of Minimally Invasive and Bariatric Surgery; and David Gershbaum, MD, attending
urologist, and others are using the high-tech daVinci Si HD Surgical System to
perform minimally invasive surgeries with extraordinary precision.
Seated at a special high-tech console a few
feet away from the patient, surgeons attach their
fingers to robotic controls, and set their eyes on
the high-definition screen where a real-time 3-D,
magnified image of the surgical field gives them
a better-than-real view of the area of interest.
Fine surgical instruments are placed inside the
patient through tiny incisions, and the surgeon is
ready to work.
“It is a far superior approach to surgery,”
says Eva Chalas, MD, Chief of Gynecological
Oncology and Director of Clinical Cancer
Services at Winthrop. “The surgeon’s view of the
surgical field exceeds what is achieved with the
natural eye, and the control over the instruments
is more precise thanks to technology that translates
the surgeon’s movements into exquisitely
defined movements by the robotic instruments.”
The new daVinci Surgical System consists of
an ergonomically designed surgeon’s console, a
patient-side cart with interactive robotic arms,
the high-performance InSite®
Vision System and proprietary
EndoWrist® Instruments.
Powered by state-of-the-art
robotic technology, the surgeon’s
hand movements are
scaled, filtered and seamlessly
translated into precise
movements of the instruments.
The result is an
intuitive interface with breakthrough
surgical capabilities.
“The EndoWrist instruments
offer great advantages
over traditional laparoscopic
instruments,” said Collin
Brathwaite, MD, Chief of the
Division of Minimally Invasive
and Bariatric Surgery at
Winthrop. “The instruments
are equipped with joints that
bend and move inside of the
patient’s body, which means that we, the surgeons,
have much greater control over our tools,
and there is less trauma to the surgical site.”
The daVinci Surgical System is ideal for many
surgeries, and is especially appropriate for surgery
in delicate or hard-to-reach areas. Dr. Brathwaite
– the first surgeon in New York State to perform
gastric bypass bariatric surgery using the daVinci
– also performs hiatal hernia repairs, spleenectomy
and gastrectomy using the system. In the
Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Dr. Chalas
uses the daVinci for gynecological surgeries, including
for women’s cancers; Farr Nezhat, MD, Director
of Minimally Invasive Gynecologic surgery – who is
also a renowned pioneer in minimally invasive and
robotic surgery – uses the daVinci for
all types of gynecologic surgeries; and
Peter S. Finamore, MD, Associate
Director of Urogynecology at Winthrop,
is using the daVinci to perform hysterectomies
and sacrocolpopexy for vaginal
or uterine prolapse. David Gershbaum,
MD, attending urologist at Winthrop,
uses the robotic system to perform surgery
for prostate cancer, as well as for
reconstructive kidney surgery to repair
obstructions or congenital defects and
for partial nephrectomies.
“The system provides visualization
of the operative field that is far superior
to traditional laproscopy,” said
Dr. Finamore.
“Robotic surgery with the daVinci
yields results comparable to those of
open surgery but with a fraction of the
trauma to the patient. Pain and healing
time are reduced tremendously
and patients return to normal activities
much faster,” said Dr. Gershbaum.
Major advantages of the new
daVinci include two major innovations in
robot-assisted surgery – Dual Console
Capability, so that two surgeons may
work in concert on a single case, and
the enhanced 3-D HD visualization,
which offers vision equivalent to a 1080i
high-definition television screen.
In addition, the daVinci also results
in less scarring than other surgical
techniques. This can be particularly
important following surgeries in delicate
areas such as the reproductive
organs or urinary tract and the quicker
recovery enables patients to get on
with their lives – and if necessary,
their continued medical treatment.
“The rapid recovery we see with the
daVinci has tremendous implications for
cancer patients,” points out Dr. Chalas.
“Often after we perform surgery to
remove a tumor, patients must undergo
radiation and/or chemotherapy treatments
to maximize the chances of
success. The faster they recover from
the surgery, the sooner they can complete
their therapy and return to
normal activities.”
The number of Winthrop surgeons
trained to utilize this highly effective
tool to perform surgeries that previously
required traditional open
surgeries is growing rapidly.
For more information about
state-of-the-art surgical services at
Winthrop, call 1-866-WINTHROP.
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Vol. 20, No. 1
Winter/Spring 2010
Back to Publications
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