Doctors achieve robotic procedure milestone

A team of surgeons at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) has performed the first kidney stone treatment procedure using the Roboflex surgical robot at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital (HMGH).The state-of-the-art flexible laparoscope technology allows for the effective, non-invasive treatment of kidney stones, and the operation marked the first time the Roboflex technology has been used at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital, located in the Industrial Area of Doha.Dr Abdulla al-Ansari, acting chief medical officer at HMC and senior consultant and chair of surgical services, and Dr Morshed Ali Salah, senior consultant and head of the Surgery and Urology Departments at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital, performed the procedure.“The successful completion of this procedure marks the first time we have used this technique at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital,” said Dr al-Ansari.“This technology was developed by clinicians from Turkey and breaks up kidney stones using a laser,” he explained. “The procedure can be performed under general anaesthesia and does not require a surgical incision, which typically means the surgery is performed in less time, and with the patient having a shorter recovery period and experiencing less pain.”“We expect to conduct around 200 surgeries each year at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital using this technology,” Dr al-Ansari said.Dr Moustafa al-Khalil, acting medical director of Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital, said that the success of the first surgery using the new technology is an important milestone.“The introduction of the Roboflex surgical robot at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital is evidence of our commitment to improving patient care by offering the highest standard of therapeutic treatment,” he said. “We are pleased to be able to provide our patients with the latest technology and efficient medical expertise.”Dr Salah said that the patient, a man in his forties who had a large stone measuring approximately 2cm in the right kidney, was an ideal candidate for the procedure, due to the size and location of his stone.“The most common form of kidney stone removal is the laparoscopic technique,” he explained. “In this technique, a laparoscope is passed through a small incision in the waist area, and then used to break the stone, or stones, into smaller pieces, which can then be removed using special surgical tools.”“In the case of this patient, a more advanced treatment was required due to the size and position of the stone,” Dr Salah added. “This advanced technique involves passing a laparoscope through the urinary tract before using a laser to break the stone into smaller pieces.”“We are pleased to now be able to offer this treatment to patients here at Hazm Mebaireek General Hospital,” he said.