A recent announcement revealed the medical success of robotic Vision Control in endoscopY or ViKY, a robotic creation from
EndoControl. Dr. Richard Rosenfield, founder and Medical Director of
Pearl Women's Center in Portland, Oregon made history by conducting the first documented unaccompanied, laparoscopic hysterectomy with only ViKY to assist him. This procedure was conducted at the outpatient facility at the Pearl Women's Center.
"What is significant about today's surgery is that new robotic equipment eliminated the need for a second surgeon and allowed me to perform a complex surgery relying only on myself,” said Dr. Richard Rosenfield, founder and Medical Director of Pearl Women's Center in Portland, Oregon.
“The surgery was completed in 2 hours and I was able to remove a large uterus with 4 tiny incisions. The patient was home with no restrictions 3 hours after surgery. She can return to work in just a few days," he added.
ViKY is a lightweight robot designed by EndoControl, an enterprise involved in computer assisted and robotics surgery. ViKY received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in December 2008 and has managed to conduct about 300 medical procedures in Europe involving gynecology, general surgery, urology and thoracic surgery. ViKY is a system that has been designed to efficient, portable and lightweight; it is estimated to be comparatively well priced.
Dr. Rosenfield was the first gynecologic surgeon in the Pacific Northwest to utilize the DaVinci system for medical procedures and his expertise in using robotic assistance in medical procedures made him EndoControl's primary choice in the US to work with ViKY.
"My hope is the innovation and portability offered by ViKY will lead to more widespread adoption of minimally invasive techniques. This is the first robotic system priced within the reach of less affluent rural hospitals and many outpatient surgery centers," said Dr. Rosenfield.
"Patients want less invasive techniques. Recovery is faster, and many operations can be performed in an outpatient setting where there are lower infection rates, less cost and no need of a hospital stay. In a time of escalating healthcare costs, we should all be concerned with maximizing efficiency while improving patient care," he added.
Shireen Dee is a contributing editor for HealthTechZone. To read more of Shireen's articles, please visit her columnist page.Edited by
Jessica Kostek
