Adventist Hinsdale Hospital doctors are using the da Vinci® Surgical System, a sophisticated robotic platform designed to enable complex surgery using a minimally invasive approach.

Dr. Sudarshan Sharma, a gynecological oncologist, performed the hospital’s first surgical procedure using the system for a woman with cancer of the uterus. The surgery, a hysterectomy and node dissection, took less than five hours on May 13 and required only six small incisions on the patient’s stomach.

“I told Dr. Sharma that I wanted to be the first patient to have this surgery,” said Deirdre Bennett, an Oak Brook resident. “I am all for technology and felt comfortable with the procedure, because I knew Dr. Sharma would be very careful. I also was impressed by the less invasive incisions, which heal faster.”

In addition to hysterectomies, the da Vinci Surgical System is suitable for a variety of other surgical procedures, including cardiac, thoracic, urological, prostatectomy.

To operate the da Vinci Surgical System, the surgeon sits at a console near the patient. The robot itself holds the surgical tools and, guided by a high-power camera, the surgeon moves the robot’s four arms. The robot’s jointed “wrists,” mimics for the surgeon the feel of open surgery. In conventional laparoscopy, the surgeon stands while he operates and uses hand-held instruments that contain long shafts and no wrists.

The da Vinci’s monitoring system provides the surgeon with a clear, colored, magnified, three-dimensional view of the patient’s anatomy. By contrast, the pictures produced during traditional laparoscopic surgery contain only two-dimensions and the surgeon must look away from the patient to view these pictures.

“Using the da Vinci is better than looking with your eyes,” Sharma said. “And that’s a plus during surgery.”

For Sharma’s cancer patients, the da Vinci Surgical System eases the surgical process. With only a few tiny cuts, women may leave the hospital within one to two days following the surgery. Most will recover within a week.

In addition, patients who undergo surgery with the da Vinci Surgical System may also experience the same benefits of other minimally invasive procedures, including less pain, blood loss and need for blood transfusion. Built-in safety features reduces potential risk to the patient deriving from human error.

By comparison, women who endure traditional hysterectomies require a large incision, experience a longer hospital stay (three to four days) and need four to six weeks to recuperate.

The da Vinci’s comfort measures extend to the surgeon, too. “I never grew tired,” Sharma said. “With long surgeries, your back and neck can hurt.”

While clinical studies support the use of the da Vinci Surgical System as an effective tool for minimally invasive surgery, individual results may vary.