Gallbladder Removed via Single Port Access

In a first-of-its-kind procedure, a surgeon successfully removed a woman's gallbladder through a single incision in the patient's belly button.

The single port access (SPA) surgery was performed using RealHand high dexterity (HD) instrumentation. RealHand instruments claim to be the first full range of motion hand-held laparoscopic instruments. Developed with the EndoLink mechanism, RealHand technology is designed to mirror the surgeon's hand direction with the added benefit of tactile feedback; when the surgeon's hand moves in one direction, the instrument tip exactly follows. RealHand instruments offer complete 7° of freedom of movement in a hand-held instrument, with no need for additional hardware.

RealHand instruments, developed by Novare Surgical Systems (Cupertino, CA, USA), could enable surgeons to perform more difficult maneuvers that cannot be completed with traditional rigid instruments. The increase in range of motion should lead the way for development of new surgical approaches and techniques. RealHand instruments have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The surgical procedure was performed by Paul G. Curcillo II, M.D. FACS, an associate professor and vice-chair of the department of surgery at Drexel University College of Medicine (Philadelphia, PA, USA; www.drexelmed.edu), and director of the robotic and minimally invasive surgery section.

"We are now able to decrease the number of incisions required in routine laparoscopy, as well as do more advanced procedures through the laparoscope,” said Dr. Curcillo. "Fewer incisions are ultimately better for the patient in terms of the amount of discomfort and recovery time, not to mention the benefit of a hidden scar. Most important, this technique can be easily learned by surgeons and gynecologists currently doing laparoscopy.”

Dr. Curcillo's procedure is similar in principal to natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES) in which surgeons enter through the mouth, rectum, or vagina in an attempt to minimize scarring and port access through the abdomen.


Related Links:
Novare Surgical Systems
Drexel University College of Medicine