A 75-year-old woman underwent first endorobotic operation
The morbidity of head and neck surgery can be significantly decreased with the use of robotic technology. Nevertheless, because the robotic arms cannot reach below the voice box, robots cannot be utilised to treat malignancies below it.
Kochi : On a 75-year-old patient, medical professionals at the VPS Lakeshore hospital here successfully performed the first endo-robotic surgery ever.
The morbidity of head and neck surgery can be significantly decreased with the use of robotic technology. Nevertheless, because the robotic arms cannot reach below the voice box, robots cannot be utilised to treat malignancies below it.
However, the hospital’s medical staff devised a novel surgical technique to address this issue.
The process known as “endo-robotic surgery” involves combining robotic and endoscopic surgery to remove the lower portion of head and neck cancer that has reached the food pipe.
The woman’s post-cricoid area (the beginning of the food pipe) was diagnosed with malignancy. She received radiation therapy at first, but the malignancy did not improve.
A thorough check that followed showed no evidence of the illness anywhere else in the body.
In most cases, the treatment for this condition involves surgically removing the voice box and food pipe, after which the food tube is rebuilt using tissue from other areas of the body.
It is well known that this procedure will present serious difficulties for the patient, including the loss of speech and natural eating abilities.
Robotic surgery was used to approach the top portion of the malignancy from the oral cavity, while a gastro endoscope was used to cut the portion of the cancer that the robot was unable to reach inside the food pipe.
The entire region impacted by the cancer was removed in one piece, and the accuracy of the cancer removal was verified by the use of intraoperative pathology data.
Following surgery, the surgical defect was rebuilt with the assistance of the robot utilising cheek tissue from the inside. Additionally, this was an innovative method of reconstructing such faults.
The patient can now speak and drink water, and the hospital has reported that they are currently healing.
The woman will be able to eat more comfortably, according to the physicians, after a few more days of rehabilitation.
