The 200th robotic intervention was carried out on May 8 by this team, described as “the first and only” within the National Health Service to perform such surgeries. These operations utilize the two Da Vinci robotic systems available at the Local Health Unit (versions X and XI), the institution announced in a statement.
As part of the Robotic Assisted Thoracic Surgery (RATS) program at ULS São José, which commenced on March 24, 2022, patients aged between 19 and 88 have undergone various thoracic procedures.
The procedures include “anatomical resections of the lung (lobectomies and segmentectomies) for lung cancer, excision of malignant (thymomas) and benign lesions from the anterior and posterior mediastinum, and correction of a diaphragmatic hernia.”
The team, which conducts surgeries in the Operating Theatre of Curry Cabral Hospital where the robots are housed, includes four specialists certified as console surgeons and three resident surgeons certified as assistant surgeons.
Additionally, the team comprises nurses and specialist nurses with extensive experience in robotic surgery, as well as health care auxiliary technicians.
The ULS São José, which incorporates these two hospitals, reports that RATS enables the safe and precise execution of multiple thoracic surgeries, noting that “the use of the robot ensures improvements in postoperative pain control and a shorter hospitalization period.”
The statement emphasizes that technological advancements have enabled the provision of increasingly less invasive approaches for necessary surgical interventions for the cure and diagnosis of multiple thoracic pathologies.
According to the institution, the experience gained will allow for increased complexity and the number of cases treated using this technique, in order to meet the growing needs, particularly in thoracic oncology.
