Surgeons Question Promotion of Robotic Surgery

Although robotic surgery is advertised to reduce scarring and blood loss, some professionals question whether healthcare organizations are overly promoting the technology, according to a Washington Post report.

An estimated 220,000 procedures in the United States were aided by the da Vinci surgical system in 2010. Once used mainly for prostate removals, it is now also used in heart valve repairs, hysterectomies, throat cancer surgeries and other procedures and is expected to be used in colorectal and general surgery.

However, a commentary in the New England Journal of Medicine estimated that robotic surgery adds an average 6 percent to the cost of an operation, excluding the cost of the robot itself. In addition, research on robotic surgery has yielded mixed results on its value compared to other surgical techniques.

Read the Washington Post report on robotic surgery.

Related Articles on Robotic Surgery:

Surgeon-Engineer Team Creates Procedure-Specific Module for Robotic Surgery
South Dakota's Sanford Health First in Region to Offer Robotic Surgery for Tongue, Tonsil Cancer

Study: Hospital Claims of Superior Robotic Surgery Not Always Backed by Evidence


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