El Camino Hospital, the hospital of Silicon Valley, expands its minimally invasive surgical program to three da Vinci® Si HD Surgical Systems. Physicians performed more than 500 robotic surgeries over the past year and expect the number to increase in 2010 as more physicians undergo training with the enhanced equipment that allows for more minimally invasive procedures. The new systems feature enhanced three-dimensional, high-definition vision with superior visual clarity of target tissue and anatomy.
El Camino Hospital surgeons will perform prostate cancer, gynecologic and bariatric surgeries with the systems. One new system will be located at the hospital's Los Gatos campus, with one new and one upgraded system in Mountain View.
"By extending this important technology to El Camino Hospital Los Gatos, it demonstrates the on-going commitment to bringing world-class healthcare to the Los Gatos community," said Eric Pifer, M.D., president, El Camino Hospital Los Gatos and chief medical officer at El Camino Hospital.
The hospital will now have two systems in Mountain View and one system in Los Gatos to support the growing market need. Currently, 25 surgeons are trained in robotic assisted surgery and more surgeons will receive training in the next year. "The strong interest among our surgeons in using this equipment has come because of the system's potential to allow them to more efficiently and precisely perform minimally invasive surgeries, which in turn improves patient experiences and outcomes," said Pifer.
The system's instrumentation offers exceptional motor control and natural dexterity, allowing the robotic arms to essentially become an extension of the surgeon's own hands - but with the benefit of full range of motion that's otherwise not possible.