Surgical Robot

At the Merian Iselin Clinic in Basel, ZweiChirurgen have access to the latest generation of a surgical robot (Intuitive da Vinci Xi®). The principle of the da Vinci Xi® system is based on the so-called master-slave assistance system. The operation is still performed using laparoscopy. However, the camera and the long instruments are held by robotic arms and no longer by the surgeon. The surgeon sits at a console on which the robotic arms with the instruments and camera are controlled using special handles.

In addition to the advantages of minimally invasive surgery (less pain, fewer complications and a quicker return to professional and private life), the surgical robot offers a high-resolution 3D image compared to “normal” laparoscopy, greater precision of instrument movements with more degrees of freedom and, finally, significantly better ergonomics for the surgeons. This technology is being used more and more frequently in hernia surgery and will become increasingly important in the future. Complex procedures that previously required open surgery can now be performed in a minimally invasive way using the surgical robot.