Shanghai, China - On April 12, Toumai^® single-arm endoscopic surgical robot (hereinafter referred to as Toumai^® single-arm robot) of Shanghai MicroPort MedBot (Group) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "MicroPort^® MedBot^® Group") successfully completed the breakthrough of Shanghai's first domestic single-arm robot-assisted urology surgery in Shanghai Changzheng Hospital. This surgery helps to narrow patient wounds and boost repair, and will promote domestic mini-invasive surgery to go further on the track featured by patient-oriented, precise treatment and less trauma.

The surgery was a cyst decortication of the left kidney performed by Shancheng Ren, Director of the Department of Urology of Shanghai Changzheng Hospital, which took only 15 minutes. The separation, resection and electrocoagulation operations were performed by the Toumai^® single-arm robot, and the process went smoothly. The success of this surgery depends on the rich surgical experience and advanced clinical technique of Director Shancheng Ren and his team, combined with the stable, reliable system of Toumai^® single-arm robot, and the close cooperation of medical staff to jointly safeguard the patient care.

The patient was a 69-year-old woman. CT plain scan and enhanced scan of the upper urinary tract showed left renal cyst, multiple pelvic calcification, two quasi-circular cysts in the left kidney, with the larger one showed about 5.5cm in length.

The patient underwent general anesthesia and was lying on the right side in a Jacknife position. After disinfected and draped, a 3cm single-port Trocar was inserted into the lateral margin of the rectus abdominis on the left side of the umbilicus. After docking, a serpentine 0° endoscope, serpentine monopolar curved scissors and serpentine bipolar oval forceps were inserted. In the high-definition immersive 3D field of view provided by the Toumai^® single-arm robot, the high flexibility of the two-handed serpentine instrument is used to separate upward along the Toldt line to the Gerota fascia, open the Gerota fascia according to the location of the cyst, clean the perirenal fat in the area and expose the cyst wall. The cyst wall was opened with serpentine monopolar curved scissors, the assistant assisted in aspiration of the cyst fluid, and after complete excision of the cyst wall, hemostatic operation was performed using serpentine bipolar oval forceps, and after examination of the trauma, the incision was closed and the operation was completed.

The process was very smooth, taking only 15 minutes, almost without bleeding, and the highly flexible snake-like arm assisted the surgeon in the fine operation. This is a proof of the surgical ability of Shancheng Ren, Director of Urology Department of Changzheng Hospital, and his assistant Zongqin Zhang, and also confirms the reliable performance of Toumai^® single-arm robot. Dr. Shancheng Ren is well practiced in laparoscopic multi-arm robotic surgery, and this surgery is the first time that Dr. Ren used a single-arm robot to perform urological surgery, and the results are exactly as expected. This also shows that the Toumai^® robot has a short learning curve and can quickly become a surgeon's right-hand man.

It is known that this surgery is Shanghai's first single-arm robot-assisted urology surgery in Shanghai Changzheng Hospital, following the first cyst removal of the right kidney by Toumai^® single-arm robot at Beijing Friendship Hospital (click to view) and the first gynecological surgery at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University (click to view). Toumai^® single-arm robot is entering more departments to carry out various surgeries and benefit more patients with cutting-edge medical technology.