The country’s first Endoscopic Thyroidectomy was performed at the St. Luke’s Medical Center using the Da Vinci Surgical System Si. The ‘Total Axillary Approach’ was followed for performing the surgery, which is called the Single Incision Robotics-Assisted Thyroid Surgery.
da Vinci Surgical System
The entire procedure took more than two hours to complete, which was much faster than conventional Endoscopic Thyroidectomy which lasts for four hours. The procedure was conducted by Dr. Menandro V. Slozon and Dr. Jeffrey J.P. Domino.
The patient, who underwent the surgery, was impressed by the scar less surgery and the quick recovery associated with the technique. The surgeons made a small incision under the axilla and the robotic arms allowed the surgeons to remotely control the movements with utmost precision. Conventional thyroidectomy requires a long incision to be made on the neck of the patient, which leaves a scar for his life. Endoscopic techniques, which came up later required keyhole incisions in the neck, were practised successfully. Robot assisted surgical techniques are much more advanced than endoscopic procedures by being more accurate and precise. According to Dr. Domino, the robotic arm simulates the human hand while performing surgeries. Just like how a human wrist flexes and rotates, the robotic arm also flexes, rotates and even extends when required. He named the technology as Endo-wrist technology. The main advantage of robotic surgeries is that all the movements can be precisely controlled by the surgeon.