Robotic Surgery Center

da Vinci® ... Changing the Experience of Surgery at East Georgia Regional Medical Center

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with a condition that may require surgery, you owe it to yourself to learn about all of your medical options, including the most effective, least invasive surgical treatments available.

The da Vinci® Surgical System provides surgeons with an alternative to both traditional open surgery and conventional laparoscopy, putting a surgeon's hands at the controls of a state-of-the-art robotic platform. The da Vinci® System enables surgeons to perform even the most complex and delicate procedures through very small incisions with unmatched precision.

For the patient, benefits may include:

• Smaller incisions – provide faster healing and little to no scarring
• Shortened hospital stay, or even outpatient surgery
• Minimal blood loss – less chance a blood transfusion will be needed during surgery
• Less post-surgical pain – minimizes the length of time or need for pain medication
• Faster healing time – you will be back to your normal routine faster

da Vinci® Surgical System

The da Vinci® Surgical System provides your surgeon with tremendous surgical accuracy utilizing high-definition 3D vision and a magnified operating view. Your doctor controls the da Vinci System, which translates his or her hand movements into smaller, more precise movements of tiny instruments inside your body. Though it is often called a “robot,” da Vinci cannot act on its own: The surgery is performed entirely by your doctor.

Together, da Vinci technology allows your doctor to perform complex procedures through just a few tiny openings. As a result patients are often able to get back to their daily routines faster — without the usual recovery for traditional surgeries.

To date, the da Vinci System has been used successfully worldwide in hundreds of thousands of procedures.

Gallbladder removal can now be performed through one tiny incision in the belly button, using Single-Site™ surgery instruments on a da Vinci® System. 

For more information, read the da Vinci FAQ »

Single-Site™ Surgery

Gallbladder removal can now be performed through one tiny incision in the belly button, using Single-Site™ instruments on a da Vinci® System. The minimally invasive procedure is traditionally called a laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removal of the gallbladder).  Using robotic assistance, the gallbladder is removed through a single incision of approximately one inch. East Georgia Regional is the first hospital in Southeast Georgia to offer this technically advanced surgery.

Potential benefits of Single-Site gallbladder surgery may include virtually scarless results, minimal pain, low blood loss, fast recovery, a short hospital stay and high patient satisfaction. The surgery can be performed in about one hour with a typical hospital stay of less than 24 hours.

During the procedure, the surgeon sits comfortably at a console, viewing a 3D, high-definition image of the patient’s anatomy. The surgeon uses controls below the viewer to move the instrument arms and camera.  In real-time, the system translates the surgeon's hand, wrist and finger movements into more precise movements of the miniaturized instruments inside the patient.

Unlike traditional robotic surgeries requiring three to five small incisions, this new technology allows for a single incision in the belly button where instruments are placed and the diseased gallbladder is removed.

Most people who require gallbladder removal are candidates for the robotic, single-incision surgery. According to the American College of Surgeons, surgery is the recommended treatment for gallbladder pain from gallstones and non-functioning gallbladders. More than 1 million people in the U.S. have their gallbladder removed each year.