What is Robotic Surgery?

Robotic surgery, or robot-assisted surgery, allows doctors to perform complex procedures with more precision, flexibility and control than is possible with conventional techniques.

The Villages Health utilizes the da Vinci Surgical System, which includes a camera arm and mechanical arms with surgical instruments attached to them. The surgeon controls the arms while seated at a computer console near the operating table, where he/she has a high-definition, magnified, 3-D view of the surgical site. The surgeon then leads other team members who assist during the operation.

Approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000, this technique has been rapidly adopted by hospitals in the United States and Europe for use in the treatment of a wide range of conditions and has numerous advantages over conventional surgical procedures.

Benefits of Robotic Surgery

Robotic surgery has a number of advantages over traditional open surgery, including:

Minimally invasive – performed through tiny incisions

Faster recovery

Less pain/blood loss

Smaller wound/scar

Less chance of infection

It’s important to note that, just like any surgery, robotic surgery involves risk, such as a risk of infection and other complications. Talk with your doctor about the benefits and risks of robotic surgery and how it compares with other techniques

Types of Robotic Surgeries Performed by The Villages Health

The Villages Health surgeons perform the following procedures using the da Vinci Surgical System:

Esophagus

Hiatal Hernia and Paraesophageal Hernia Repair
Heller’s Myotomy for Achalasia

Stomach

Total and Partial Gastrectomy for Benign or Malignant Disease
Gastrojejunostomy
Antrectomy
Billroth 1
Billroth 2

Hernias

Inguinal
Femoral
Umbilical/Incisional
Spigelian
Parastomal

Small Bowel

Small Bowel Resection for Malignancy
Intussusceptions
Meckel’s Diverticulectomy

Pancreas

Distal Pancreatectomy for Malignancy
Pancreatic Pseudocyst

Adrenal Gland

Adrenalectomy

Colon

Colectomies for Recurrent Diverticulitis, Volvulus
Colectomies for Malignancy
Diverting Colostomies
Low Anterior Resections for Cancer

Gynecological

Hysterectomy (Benign)
Hysterectomy (Cancer)
Myomectomy
Sacrocolpopexy
Endometriosis Resection

Robotic Surgery at The Villages Health