By Mark J. Bonamo
The first time you set your eyes on the da Vinci® S
Robotic Surgical System, you are not sure what it
is. Is it an oversized video game? A carnival attraction?
A small hybrid car?
The daVinci® S is none of these. It
is one of the most technologically advanced pieces
of surgical equipment available today. Newark Beth
Israel Medical Center, where the Robotic Surgery
Center uses the device for a multitude of medical
purposes, organized a demonstration of the apparatus
during the morning commute at the Secaucus Junction
train station on December 5.
Promoting the idea that people in the area should "commute
to work, not to surgery", the daVinci® S
demonstration was part of an effort by the hospital
to spread the message that while many in the train
station have to go to New York for work, they don't
have to cross the river for superior medical care.
Intuitive Surgical is a Sunnyvale,
California firm that developed the technology that
is behind the da Vinci® S. Mike Tropea,
the clinical sales manager for the New York/New
Jersey metropolitan area, explained how the robotic
surgical tool arrived from the Silicon Valley to
surgical theaters around the country.
"The da Vinci® S Robotic Surgical System
came out of a research grant established by the U.S.
government and Stanford University to determine a
way to do remote battlefield surgery," he said. "The
idea was to have surgeons not so close to the battlefield
in order to preserve their skills, but still provide
the best care possible."
Researchers soon realized that this first goal was
not quite yet achievable. However, another use for
the technology being developed was soon discovered.
"Surgeons make incisions for two reasons: to get
their eyes and their hands inside the patient," he
said. "Typically, the implements held at the end
of surgeon's hand are very small. What we've done
is create a long-shafted instrument that you can
manipulate with your thumbs and forefingers that
increase the flexibility of surgical instruments,
and therefore increase surgeons' dexterity and ability
to perform complex surgery. These improvements allow
for far smaller incisions for patients and faster
recovery times so that people can quickly get back
to normal life. The incisions can be as small as
the size of a dime."
The da Vinci® S also comes with a tiny
camera attached to the end of it that allows for
3-D vision of the operating field, a critical factor
for surgeons who need to have as much depth perception
as possible during operations. The ends also have
full range of motion, moving in any and all directions
that a human hand can.
While the original models of
the da Vinci® S were introduced in
1999, the most current model has only been around
since January 2006. It has been used to perform
many complex surgeries such as cardiac bypasses,
hysterectomies, prostate cancer surgeries and more.
Dr. Domenico Savatta, 35, is the head of the urology
division at Newark Beth Israel. He discussed what
the introduction of the daVinci® S into
his surgical instrument repertoire has meant to him.
"I used to do a lot of open surgery operations," he
said. "Once I learned how to use the robot, I became
able to do most of my big operations, including prostate
cancer operations, in a way that is minimally invasive.
With smaller incisions, there is a lot less pain
for patients, as well as a quicker recovery. "
The daVinci® S does not come cheap.
The cost for one robotic surgical system is approximately
$1.7 million. However, Dr. Savatta firmly believes
that it is worth every red cent.
"I come from the video game age," he said. "Comparing
it to a video game kind of lessens what you are trying
to do, but the feel of it is very satisfying. It's
fun for me to use it. When you get good at it, it's
so easy to use. You can use it to do operations that
you wouldn't be able to do any other way. Recently,
we were working on a lady who had a kidney tumor
almost a foot long. We did it all with the robotic
system. When you do something that would otherwise
be impossible without the technology, you feel the
satisfaction of giving the patient a better potential
outcome that you could without the robot."
Not far from the Secaucus Junction train station,
Secaucus chiropractor Dr. Robert Berckes also noted
how technology continues to change the practice of
medicine.
"I use ultrasound technology and electric muscle
stimulation devices in my work," he said. "In the
last ten years, these components have become a lot
more technologically advanced. I can now work twice
as efficiently within a shorter time frame and achieve
much better results. I can definitely see how robotic
technology can also achieve better results."
"It's fun for me to use it." -
Dr. Domenico Savatta.
Publication: SECAUCUS REPORTER.com
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