Shoalhaven residents will now have access to robotic knee replacement surgery technology with Nowra Private Hospital unveiling the region's first VELYS Robotic-Assisted Solution.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The VELYS device is designed to offer surgeons better vision and access during knee replacement surgery.
Nowra's Di Higginbotham, in February, was the first patient to have surgery with the new robot at the local based hospital
Ms Higginbotham decided to undergo a bilateral total knee replacement with Nowra Private Hospital Orthopaedic Surgeon, Dr David Cossetto, as she was suffering from osteoarthritis, bone spurs, cysts and bad knees.
"The hospital was brilliant, the physios were brilliant, the whole thing went very smoothly as far as I'm concerned."
READ MORE:
"I think it's brilliant, not having to travel to Canberra or Wollongong for this surgery.
"I think it's excellent for local patients to have this option available to them."
Dr Cossetto said total knee replacement surgery had come a long way since contemporary designs became popular in the late 1970s/ early 1980s.
"The recent introduction of robotic technology into the planning and execution of knee replacement surgery is part of the expected normal evolutionary process where procedures are hopefully improved and refined to the betterment of patient outcomes," he said.
"Some early studies have shown more accurate bone preparation, less surrounding soft tissue injury and ultimately more accurate final leg alignment and implant positioning with robotic assisted surgery."
"In general, all these factors have the potential to provide the patient with a quicker less painful recovery and improved mobility."
Dr Cossetto said that the introduction of this technology will help to elevate the facility as a regional centre of excellence for joint repair surgery.