After successfully applying robotic endoscopic surgery on children, this device will soon be performed on adults.

Robotic endoscopy is a new step forward in endoscopic surgery. Instead of directly holding a scalpel, the surgeon will sit and control the robot to perform the operations. The robot Vietnam is using is of the 4th generation (currently these robots have developed to the 5th generation) with 4 flexible arms.

According to Dr. Le Thanh Hai, Director of the National Children's Hospital (Hanoi), to make the most of robots, the Ministry of Health has a policy to expand the use of laparoscopic robots in adults. The hospital will coordinate with other hospitals such as Bach Mai, Viet Duc, 108... to implement this so that people can benefit from modern technology. The issue here is the coordination mechanism between hospitals, patient transportation...

Surgeons control robotic arms during laparoscopic surgery. Photo: Provided by the hospital.

After more than a year of application, the National Children's Hospital (Hanoi) has successfully used robotic laparoscopic surgery for 82 children, with positive results. For choledochal cysts in children, Dr. Pham Duy Hien, Director of the Pediatric Endoscopy Center, National Children's Hospital, said that he had performed surgery to remove the cyst and connect the common hepatic duct to the jejunum for 30 children. The surgery took about 150 minutes, slightly longer than laparoscopic surgery; the average number of days in hospital was 4-10 days. Through monitoring, 2 children showed simple abdominal pain, 2 children had fever; no case required reoperation.

Initially, choledochal cysts in children were treated with open surgery, but laparoscopic surgery began in 1995 and became the standard surgery. Conventional laparoscopic surgery is safe, but anastomosis is a challenge for surgeons. Using laparoscopic robotic surgery has helped reduce this difficulty.

“In particular, using robots helps eliminate hand tremors, technicians can operate very comfortably, 3D images, and 12 times magnification of the camera. Difficult endoscopic surgery becomes simple with robotic endoscopy,” Dr. Hien analyzed.

According to Dr. Hien, most diseases can use this robot. For example, when removing cancerous lymph nodes, using a robot with 12 times magnification and 3D images helps doctors easily remove all lymph nodes without open surgery. In addition, many countries also use robots to remove prostate, bladder, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, fibroids in women, etc.

This technique is safe and feasible, but the cost is still expensive. Dr. Hien hopes that the application can be applied to adults as soon as possible; priority will be given to complex diseases that require dissection and suturing. The cost of a robotic laparoscopic surgery on adults in many countries is about 15,000-30,000 USD.

Dr. Tran Hieu Nhu Hoc, Head of the Department of Surgery, Bach Mai Hospital (Hanoi) also said that robotic laparoscopic surgery has many advantages, being able to perform movements that cannot be performed in conventional laparoscopic surgery. If it can be applied to adults, it will bring many benefits; applicable to many diseases. Countries mainly perform this technique on adults.

Vietnam is the first country in Southeast Asia to have this high-tech application center.

According to VnExpress