EndoWrist & Surgeon Hands
How does the da Vinc Surgical System work? The surgeon sits at a console and directs the robots arms literally an extension of the doctors using special controls. The robots arms make incisions and other surgical moves that are at angles not possible with the human hand. Using a binocular camera, the surgeon can manipulate the instruments with a finer degree of accuracy than his own fingers would allow. The robot's "wrists" move the tools, bending back and forth, side to side, and rotating in a full circle, allowing greater range of motion. The endoscope provides an improved view of the surgical site one that is 12 times as good as the surgeons eye alone, as well as a 360-degree range of vision, the ability to zoom in and out, plus high-definition, full-color and 3-D images.
"This is all part of our vision for Sentara Heart," said Bruce Holstien, administrator of Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. "Our investment in technologies such as the da Vinc Surgical System will further position us as a leader in cardiac care nationwide and enable us to use tomorrows health care technology today."
According to Intuitive Surgical, only 210 da Vinc Systems are in use in major hospitals and surgical facilities in the United States, Europe and Japan.
More Details:
The da Vinci Surgical Robot is an FDA approved medical device that has been used in a variety of cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and urological surgical procedures. The robotic tower includes four separate arms that are positioned over the patient. One arm controls the camera device, while the other three control operating instruments. A full range of instruments are available to the surgeon, including instruments to grasp, cut, coagulate, dissect, and sew.
The surgeon sits comfortably at a console station and leans into a set of eyeglasses that provide a 3-dimmensional view of the surgical field. Below the viewing device are two robotic arm controllers that fit over the surgeons thumb and index fingers. By moving the arm controllers, the surgeon manipulates the robotic instruments inside the patient. The tips of the instruments will mimic exactly the motions the surgeon creates with his hands with a full seven degrees of motion. By pressing a foot pedal, the surgeon can switch between instrument control and camera control to change the view of the field. A separate video tower is placed at the patient side for the assistant surgeons to view the procedure. The console surgeon is only a few feet away from the patient and an intercom device allows clear communication between the members of the surgical team.