Glendale hospital becomes 1st hospital in West to use new robotic technique for surgeries

PHOENIX — Banner Thunderbird Medical Center in Glendale recently became the first hospital in the West to use a new robotic technique.

The Aesculap Aeos Robotic Digital Microscope provides surgeons with a high-definition 3D visual, which can be viewed by the entire operating room in real time during procedures. In addition, surgeons can use a handgrip or wireless foot switch to control the robotic exoscope’s movement, waypoints and lock-on targets.

The device has already been used by one of the hospital’s neurosurgery teams to perform craniotomy procedures to resect brain tumors.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled with this new technology to advance brain tumor microneurosurgery,” Dr. Dilan Ellegala, a professor of neurosurgery with Banner University Neurosurgery at Banner Thunderbird, said in a news release. “Not only does the exoscope allow for a more comfortable operating experience, it also enables better communication and workflow between our team members in the operating room, which are key factors to any successful procedure.”

Banner noted that neurosurgeons have the “highest ergonomic risk factors,” citing studies that show, while operating, 54% experience cervical or lumbar discomfort, 40% have neck pain and 27% suffer from shoulder pain.

The robotic technique is not only meant to minimize surgeons’ fatigue but also to provide a more comfortable experience for them.

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