A new and exciting surgical technique has become an option for women who want to preserve their uterus while treating uterine fibroids effectively.
The technique, known as robotic myomectomy, uses a specially designed robot and finely tuned optic (vision) aids that allow surgeons to see inside the body. Surgeons can perform the surgery remotely, from a control panel a few feet away from the patient, while viewing images of the area via cameras placed at strategic locations in the body.
The technique is currently one of the treatments being used at the University of Maryland Heath System to combat fibroids while preserving fertility. It was recently reported by local NBC station Channel 11 in Baltimore as well as ScienceDaily.com, and is beginning to garner interest in mainstream health media because of its effectiveness and the novelty of robotics use in surgery.
The robotic device used for the surgery is known as the da Vinci Surgical System, and is made by Intuitive Surgical, Inc., whose US headquarters are in Sunnyvale, California. The system boasts a number of advantages over traditional, hands-on minimally invasive surgeries. The da Vinci robotic device can be used with improved optic capabilities such as three-dimensional viewing technology a step above that currently used in laparoscopy, and this improves doctors’ abilities to see what they are doing. Also, the system’s controls are made to mimic traditional open surgery, so that doctors with a background in open surgery are able to quickly learn and improve at using the system.
In addition to these perks, an electronic, robotic device has certain advantages over human hands. Robotic movements can achieve greater precision, because the machine’s responsiveness to motion is more finely tuned than that of the human body. When it comes to using surgical tools such as cutting devices, the maneuverability of the robot also excels beyond the capability of a surgeon’s hand holding the same sort of tool. And, as anyone who has had too many cups of coffee can testify, hands themselves are not always 100 percent dependable. While capable surgeons possess excellent fine motor skills and are known for having incredibly steady hands, a well-calibrated machine could help to reduce instances of slippage or inaccuracy during surgery.
This is not to say that there are no advantages to hands-on approaches to surgery, which have accomplished very impressive feats for decades. While the idea of a fleet of robot surgeons able to cut with mathematical precision and work multiples faster than their human counterparts is probably the dream of many science-fiction aficionados, the time when such a thing may become possible is years and years away. For example, no one has yet been able to invent a machine or computer of any sort that can mimic the decision-making capabilities of even the least academically capable human being, and rarely does the human body have to combat the destructive effects of a power failure.
However, many doctors and health care workers do hope that the collaboration of human and machine will lead to a winning combination for sufferers of uterine fibroids.
Uterine fibroids are benign (noncancerous) tumors that grow in the uterus, causing pain, bloating, digestive and urinary symptoms, bleeding, infertility and miscarriage. They are a very common ailment in women in their late reproductive years, and also a leading cause of hysterectomy in otherwise fertile and healthy women.
