SUMTER, S.C. — A new robotic assistant is now available for use at Prisma Health Tuomey Hospital.
The $2 million DaVinci Xi 3D surgical system allows surgeons to see beyond the capabilities of the human eye by offering a separate console that shows inside the patients body.
From that console, surgeons can also control the machine's movements like an extra set of arms, according to General Surgeon Adam Pryzbyla, which, he says, can make surgical procedures quicker and less invasive for patients.
"It gives you a three-dimensional view inside the patient and then you're in complete control," Pryzbyla said.
The machine enters the body, then bends and rotates to the surgeons instruction with wrist-like mobility, offering greater precision as a tool in the operating room.
"It gives us, kind of, extra abilities to do things that you couldn't do because you didn't have the capability to articulate your instruments or get into a position to see certain things," he said. "These patients are coming out, you know, they have incisions the size of a pen, basically. You know, two or three of those.... they're going home a lot quicker and they feel a lot better afterward."
The first surgeries in Sumter with the new equipment were hernia repair and gallbladder removal.
Not all patients are candidates for this technology.
Patients seeking assistance for minimally invasive surgeries like gallbladder removal, hernia repair, small bowel and colon surgeries, certain OB/GYN surgeries and urology procedures could have this technology as an option.
To learn if you are a candidate for robotic-assisted surgery in the Sumter area, contact Sumter Surgical at 803-775-1550.