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Use of Da Vinci in General Surgery

Dear Colleague,


I would like to take this opportunity to share my experience with robotic surgery.  I will always strive to find safer, less painful and more efficient ways of caring for patients.  That is why I am now using the Da Vinci Si robotic surgery system to perform most surgeries.


The benefits of transitioning from open cholecystectomy to a laparoscopic technique are well known to the medical community. The advent of laparoscopic surgery revolutionized patient care and outcomes for gallbladder disease.  Having been trained in minimally invasive surgery, I have experienced the wows of performing complicated laparoscopic surgeries on very difficult patients. A few of the principal limitations to laparoscopy are the 2D vision, loss of the wrist motion, and the torque on the abdominal wall. Moreover, single incision laparoscopic surgery can be very cumbersome for the surgical team. We are now at the beginning of the next phase of improvement in care for patients requiring cholecystectomy, where we will use fewer incisions and better techniques.


Nationally, the da Vinci technology is allowing surgeons to dramatically reduce the rate of conversion to open surgery and improve clinical outcomes, creating a new standard of care. It has proven to extend the benefits of minimally invasive surgery to more patients. By virtue of its 3D HD vision, wristed instrumentation and precise intuitive movement, patients are afforded better outcomes as it relates to reduced hospital stay, reduced blood loss and complications, less post-operative pain, and quicker return to normal routines. Even the most challenging and complex surgical candidates can expect minimally invasive surgery that provides: a better approach to hand-sewing with easier, quicker and more precise suturing; a reduced risk of anastomotic leaks and strictures; shorter OR times, especially in high BMI patients; a reproducible approach that restores open surgical principles to minimally invasive surgery by offering the surgeon superior visualization, precision, and ergonomics.


While robotic surgery and single incision surgery are not new, combining the two to remove the gallbladder allows for this paradigm shift.  The da Vinci Si provides the aforementioned 3D HD view and allows for triangulation of tissues, making dissection much safer and less cumbersome than prior single site approaches. The FDA has recently approved single incision robotic assisted cholecystectomy. I am pleased to be one of the first surgeons in the state of Indiana to offer this advanced technology for your patients.  Just as laparoscopic cholecystectomy improved patient outcomes, robotic single incision surgery will take this surgery to the next level.



Surgeries that I perform using the da Vinci Si robot include:

• Roux en Y Gastric Bypass
• Sleeve Gastrectomy
• Multiport Cholecystectomy
• Single Incision Cholecystectomy
• Nissen Fundoplication



After performing over 300 successful surgeries with the Da Vinci Si robot, I realized its superior benefits. Going from laparoscopy to Da Vinci is like going from analog Tv to HDTV. What a huge difference! If you have a patient whom you think may benefit from a robotic approach to their gallbladder surgery, or any other abdominal procedure, I would like to offer my services to you and your patient.  I would be happy to see any of your patients in consultation.  Please contact my office at 317 598-0094 to schedule an appointment. If you have questions regarding robotic surgery or other services that I may offer your patients, please feel free to contact me.



Sincerely, 



Scott E. Mimms, M.D

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