Piedmont Henry Hospital is now offering numerous robotic assisted surgical procedures. Robotically assisted surgery enhances the surgeon’s vision and control, and in some cases can lead to faster recovery times and better clinical outcomes for patients. By using robotics, surgeons can make smaller incisions and do intricate work in certain very complex procedures.
“The robot is not doing the work. It is a tool which the surgeon controls,” said Paul Joyner, M.D., a board-certified surgeon in both colon and rectal surgery as well as general surgery. “The robot just becomes an extension of the surgeon’s hands, allowing us to make smaller, more precise movements than we would be able to make with our own hands.”
Currently, many of the surgical procedures performed at the hospital require one large incision to grant the surgeon access to a particular area of the body to allow them to work. With robotics, the surgeon can make several small incisions to gain even better access. In addition to the robotic instruments that can move 360 degrees, the system also provides an HD camera that grants the surgeon an incredible depth of vision in a three-dimensional view of the area they are working on.
Among the benefits of robotic surgery are:
- Decreased blood loss
- Reduced risk of infection
- Less pain and scarring
- Shorter hospital stays, and
- Faster recovery time
Piedmont Henry will also use robotic assisted surgery to treat a variety of conditions including prostate cancer and urological conditions in men to conditions such as uterine fibroids, hyperplasia and endometriosis in women.
“After a robotic-assisted surgical procedure, a patient will typically have a shorter stay and be able to return home sooner,” said Dr. Joyner. “Our patients are home and returning to normal activities much sooner.”
To learn more about robotic assisted surgery, visit piedmont. org/robotics.
