The Da Vinci Surgical System is designed to facilitate the performance of complex and delicate surgical manipulations. This system, created by the American Institute of Surgical, was first introduced in 1999 for cardiac surgery and was subsequently widely adopted and developed significantly for general, gynecological, urological, and thoracic procedures (Koh et al., 2018). The new robot was demonstrated with support from the University Medical Center and the Department of Surgery at the University of Arizona (Koh et al., 2018).
Research suggests that long-term results are, as a rule, the same as open surgery outcomes, while robotic procedures are more expensive (Crew, 2020). Nevertheless, the Da Vinci Surgical System technology is widely used by medical providers. It is explained by the fact that this system provides explicit benefits for the patient associated with the condition during and after surgery and the recovery period, which is an essential aspect.
Due to its conservatism, surgery remained, until recently, immune to the advances in robotics. A breakthrough in the quality of the creation of the Da Vinci Surgical System makes it possible to facilitate extremely complex surgical tasks, where the operator requires exceptional virtuosity in performing manipulations. Surgeons prefer to use the Da Vinci Surgical System because it provides improved visualization, flexibility in the wrists and arms, and a comfortable seated position for many hours of operation (Crew, 2020).
The system’s three-dimensional image in front of the specialist’s eyes provides a complete illusion of operating in real space (Crew, 2020). Advantages of the surgeon’s work with the Da Vinci Surgical System logically create benefits for the patient. In particular, the possibility of damage to healthy tissues not affected by the disease as a consequence of increased surgical precision, dexterity, and enlarged range of motion, is prevented. In addition, the need for a small number of tiny incisions reduces blood loss and the risk of contamination and getting the infection into the patient’s body.
Several studies report the safety and effectiveness of robotic surgery for a variety of diseases. In particular, research by Koh et al. (2018) confirmed the benefits of the Da Vinci Surgical System. They include smaller wounds and scars, less postoperative pain and discomfort, shorter hospital location, recovery, and return to normal activities (Koh et al., 2018). Robotic surgery only requires a few weeny incisions to position a high-resolution 3D camera and miniature instruments inside the patient. It provides better precision, control, and vision for the surgeon (Koh et al., 2018). As a consequence, patients frequently recuperate earlier, switch to additional treatment as needed, and return to their daily routine more quickly.
To summarize, the introduction of robotic surgery into modern medicine shows the significant benefits of this technique in the treatment of a number of diseases, primarily for the patient. It is deeply symbolic that the authors gave their brainchild the name of the superlative scientist, anatomist, engineer-inventor, and experimenter Leonardo da Vinci. Robotic technologies open broad prospects for the further development of entire areas of clinical medicine.
Their advantages are obvious since their inculcation, first of all, implements the ancient postulate and the ethical medical principle of nonmaleficence. At the same time, no matter how the most fantastic ideas are realized as a result of scientific and technological progress, the key figure in surgery will always be a human. As a consequence, the development of the skills of medical providers is undoubtedly no less important since the outcomes of any type of surgery and the patient’s life depend precisely on them.
References
Crew, B. (2020). Worth the cost? A closer look at the da Vinci robot’s impact on prostate cancer surgery. Nature, 580(7804). Web.
Koh, D. H., Jang, W. S., Park, J. W., Ham, W. S., Han, W. K., Rha, K. H., & Choi, Y. D. (2018). Efficacy and safety of robotic procedures performed using the da Vinci Robotic Surgical System at a single institute in Korea: Experience with 10000 cases. Yonsei Medical Journal, 59(8), 975–981. Web.