FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
FEB. 24, 2009
Minimally invasive hysterectomy makes recovery quicker, easier for local
patients
A complete
hysterectomy with one night spent in the hospital, no stitches and a stroll
outside just four days later?
Wanda Ackerman of Billings, 47, a mother of
two and a grandmother of one, was the first patient at St. John’s to undergo
surgery with the da Vinci surgery robot. OB/GYN Kent Burk performed her
hysterectomy with the robot last September.
“I’ve had relatives and friends who have had hysterectomies and were in bed
for weeks,” she says. “Why be in bed for six weeks when you can be up and
moving around three or four days after surgery?”
Hysterectomies can sometimes be performed through the vagina. However, when
the uterus is enlarged or if the patient has internal scarring from prior
surgery or other conditions, open abdominal hysterectomy is usually
performed. Open hysterectomies account for around 70 percent of all
hysterectomies performed, Dr. Burk says.
Because of a large fibroid tumor attached to her uterus, Ackerman required
an abdominal hysterectomy. She chose to have her ovaries, Fallopian tubes
and cervix removed because of her age and a family cancer history.
“Any hysterectomy that requires an abdominal incision can now be performed
with the da Vinci,” Dr. Burk says. “The real advantages are decreased blood
loss, less pain and downtime and less chance of infection. This system is
the latest and greatest tool we have to perform minimally invasive
surgeries.”
Since Ackerman’s surgery, Dr. Burk has performed several more robotic
hysterectomies on women ranging in age from their late 30s to their late
70s. All of the patients have done remarkably well. Dr. Burk performs the
non-cancerous gynecological procedures while gynecologic oncologist James
Bosscher, M.D., performs the surgeries that involve malignancies.
Other surgeries that can be performed robotically include sacrocolpopexy
(surgical correction of vaginal prolapse), myomectomy (surgical removal of
uterine fibroids while preserving the reproductive organs), prostatectomy
and certain cardiac procedures.
More St. John’s surgeons plan
utilize the da Vinci for a minimally invasive surgery option to their
patients in the future.
Ackerman baby-sits her 3-year-old granddaughter, Isabella and resumed
keeping her just three weeks after surgery.
“I felt great, but Dr. Burk didn’t want me lifting her until then,” she
says.
St. John’s
Hospital purchased the da
Vinci last August. Three St. John’s
surgeons – urologist Eric Guilliams, M.D., OB/GYN Kent Burk, M.D., and
gynecologic oncologist James Bosscher, M.D. – trained to use the da Vinci
system last fall. Cardiothoracic surgeon Fon Huang, M.D. plans to begin
training this spring. Uses for the system include prostate and other
urologic surgeries, hysterectomy and other gynecologic/oncologic surgeries
and certain heart surgeries, including mitral valve repair.
Seated at a console a few feet away from the patient, a surgeon views an
actual image of the surgical field while operating in real time, through
tiny incisions using miniaturized instruments.
“This system enables surgeons to perform the most complex and delicate
procedures through very small incisions with unmatched precision,” explains
Fred McQueary, M.D., St. John’s Clinic president. “Complex
procedures like cardiac surgery require an excellent view of the operative
field and the ability to maneuver instruments within tight spaces with
precision and control. We were impressed with the benefits to surgeons and
patients, such as surgical precision, increased range of motion, improved
dexterity and access.”
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