This Isn’t Your Mother’s Hysterectomy: How Robotic Surgery Helps Your Reproductive Health

Millions of women may need a hysterectomy at some point in their lives. Robotic surgery is a standard, modern solution for performing this procedure, so let’s find out more about how it helps and what it means for your reproductive health.

Dr. Staci McHale and the experienced medical staff at WHASN Sunset Valley assist women in the Las Vegas, Nevada area with many issues, including performing surgeries for hysterectomies when needed.

Reasons for getting a hysterectomy

A hysterectomy or removal of the uterus permanently removes the possibility of having children. For millions of women, it’s a necessary procedure to manage health problems, including:

Fibroids

Fibroids are noncancerous uterine growths that cause heavy bleeding, stomach distention, and pain, and are a prevalent reason for hysterectomies.

Endometriosis

The growth of endometrial tissue (a layer inside the uterus) outside of the uterus causes extreme pain, menstrual irregularities, and possibly infertility.

Uterine prolapse

Uterine prolapse is a condition where the uterus slips out of its natural position into the vagina. Women who have had multiple vaginal births are at higher risk, but it can happen with obese women and those in postmenopause.

Complications from delivery

Severe bleeding and other major problems after a vaginal or cesarean delivery can, in extreme circumstances, call for a hysterectomy.

Cancer

In estimated 10% of these procedures, cancer that affects one or multiple parts of your reproductive system, including the uterus, may necessitate this process, depending on how far it’s spread.

Types of hysterectomies available

This process can remove part or all of the uterus, which is done in a few ways:

• Supracervical or subtotal: removal of the upper section of the uterus
• Total: removing the entire uterus and cervix
• Radical: removing the uterus, tissues on the sides of it, the cervix, and the upper section of your vagina

Radical hysterectomies are reserved for severe cancer cases to stop the spread to even more tissue. Other parts of the reproductive system, such as your ovaries, are sometimes also performed as needed.

The da Vinci surgery process

The da Vinci surgery process is a robotic-assisted procedure that performs surgery with high precision, greater dexterity, and a greater range of motion using only small incisions. Don’t let the robotic part of the process fool you; this technology relies on these tools to achieve the results, but at no point is it ever performed solely by machines. We are controlling the procedures at all times.

The da Vinci surgery functions in three parts: the control center, where we perform the work; the patient cart, which contains all the tools for the operation; and the vision cart, which houses the hardware and software to make this possible. 

This setup uses several robotic arms (three or four) to hold the instruments, alongside an endoscopic camera that we use to look into the body and target the areas we need to work on. 

This surgery is often used for hysterectomies and many other delicate procedures. When it’s time to have this done, you’ll be in good hands with us. Schedule an appointment with Dr. McHale and the WHASN Sunset Valley team today for the surgery or other treatments to manage uterine problems.