Doctors use robotic arm for surgery in woman's stomach

Surgeons operated on a 52-year old obese woman, who needed an abdominal laparoscopy and gastric bypass, with a robotic arm last month. The woman needed to lose weight before she could have a knee replacement surgery.

Surgeons operated on a 52-year old obese woman, who needed an abdominal laparoscopy and gastric bypass, with a robotic arm last month. The woman needed to lose weight before she could have a knee replacement surgery.

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Aparna (name changed), an Andheri resident, weighed 113kg was unable to walk because of arthritis in her knees. Diagnosed with borderline diabetes, she was advised to get her knee replaced.

However, Dr Vinay Joshi, consultant orthopaedic surgeon at Kokilaben Dhirubai Ambani Hospital, Andheri (West), realised Aparna would have to lose weight before the knee could be replaced, or the surgery might fail. So he referred her to consultant bariatric (weight-loss) surgeon, Dr Jaydeep Palep, for abdominal laparoscopy and gastric bypass.

In a regular abdominal laparoscopy (a procedure to view the inside of the abdomen), surgeons blow carbon dioxide into the abdomen and lift the skin with the pressure before inserting a camera. "In this case, the abdominal wall was too thick. The robotic arm helped lift the wall," said Dr Palep.

The surgeons then conducted a gastric bypass, stapling her stomach to make it smaller. In a month, Aparna has lost nearly 10kg and can take short walks. "She is more energetic," said her daughter.