On October 22, 2024, a surgical team performed the first fully robotic double lung transplant on a 57-year-old woman with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) using the Da Vinci Xi robotic system at each stage. The minimally invasive procedure involved making small incisions between the ribs, removal of the lung using robotic system, preparation of the surgical site for implantation, and implantation of both lungs into the patient using the robotic techniques.The patient had a genetic predisposition to lung disease. She was diagnosed with COPD in 2010 at the age of 43 years. Her condition deteriorated following COVID-19 in 2022.
This advancement makes robotic surgery and minimally invasive patient care a potential treatment option of high relevance because of reduced impact of major surgery on patients, limited postoperative pain and better health outcome. The traditional surgery is associated with high morbidity due to extensive invasiveness. The novel technique utilizing the Da Vinci robotic system reduces incision size and invasiveness and has a better outcome for the patients.
Earlier, the surgeons had performed the fully robotic single lung transplant to implant a right lung in a 69-year-old patient using the novel technique employing the Da Vinci robotic system.
The patients with end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have lung transplantation as one of the most common treatment options available to them. A systematic review suggests that double lung transplantation is better than single lung transplantation in terms of the long-term survival.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the fourth leading cause of death and the eighth leading cause of poor health worldwide. It was responsible for about 3.5 million deaths in 2021 which was about 5% of all global deaths. Over 70% of COPD cases in high-income countries is attributed to tobacco smoking. In low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), household air pollution is a major risk factor with smoking accounting for 30–40% of COPD cases.
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References:
- NYU Langone Hospitals. News – NYU Langone Performs World’s First Fully Robotic Double Lung Transplant. Posted 21 November 2024. Available at https://nyulangone.org/news/nyu-langone-performs-worlds-first-fully-robotic-double-lung-transplant
- Emerson D., et al 2024. Robotic-assisted lung transplantation: First in man. The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. Volume 43, Issue 1, January 2024, Pages 158-161. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healun.2023.09.019
- Fang, YC., Cheng, WH., Lu, HI. et al. Double lung transplantation is better than single lung transplantation for end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a meta-analysis. J Cardiothorac Surg 19, 162 (2024). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13019-024-02654-6
- WHO. Factsheets – Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). 6 November 2024. Available at https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-(copd)/
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