How the da Vinci System Works

The da Vinci® Surgical System transforms the experience of major surgery by enabling surgeons to use minimally invasive techniques for procedures that have typically been performed with traditional open surgery.

Da Vinci is sometimes called robotic surgery, but it's the surgeon who performs every step of the procedure, using a remarkable set of tools: four robotic arms with wrists that turn 360 degrees holding miniature instruments — including a high-definition 3D camera that provides 10-times-normal magnification.

Instead of a single large incision, the surgeon makes a few dime-size incisions through which da Vinci's tiny instruments are introduced.

Then the surgeon moves to the control console, which gives him a 3D view of the surgical site and translates his hand movements into the incredibly precise micro-movements of the da Vinci surgical instruments.

For patients, this less invasive procedure means less trauma, less pain, less blood loss, less risk of side effects, shorter hospital stays and faster recovery.

Here at Southcoast, surgeons are using da Vinci to remove cancerous prostates. In the near future, we'll be offering other applications, including gynecology procedures.

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