Physician at St. Joseph’s Hospital-North is First in Tampa to Perform Robotic-Assisted Single-Site Hysterectomy

Tampa, Fla. (April 30, 2014) - Dr. Pamela Twitty successfully completed the first single-site robotic hysterectomy in Tampa today at St. Joseph’s Hospital-North, giving women a less invasive option for this complex operation.

     ” "This is a technology that produces a wonderful cosmetic outcome following gynecologic surgery and I'm very excited to be able to offer it to my patients," said Dr. Twitty. “There’s less scarring, less post-operative pain and less recovery time compared to traditional hysterectomy.”

     Hysterectomy removes a woman’s uterus and is the second most common surgery for women in America with approximately one-third of all women undergoing the operation by the time they are 60. Hysterectomy is often recommended to treat serious and sometimes painful conditions such as endometriosis, excessive menstrual bleeding or uterine fibroids. 

     In a traditional open procedure, physicians perform the procedure through a five to seven inch incision in the woman’s abdomen. This leaves a noticeable scar and approximately one to two months recovery time. Laparoscopic hysterectomies can be performed using multiple, smaller, but still readily visible incisions."  The da Vinci robotic-assisted single-site surgery is less invasive and allows women to return to their regular activities more quickly.

     During the single-site hysterectomy, Dr. Twitty makes a single, one inch incision in the navel. She controls the surgical instruments from a console in the operating room, which displays a three-dimensional, high-definition image of the patient’s anatomy. The system translates her hand, wrist and finger movements into more precise movements of the miniaturized instruments inside the patient. 

The benefits of a single-site hysterectomy include:

• Less pain
• Reduced trauma to body
• Less scaring
• Short hospital stay (usually about 24 hours)
• Reduced blood loss and need for transfusion
• Quicker recovery and return to normal activities

      “It’s thrilling to bring this new technology to women in Hillsborough County,” said Kathy Myers, Director of Operations at St. Joseph’s Hospital-North. “Being the first facility in Tampa to offer this procedure demonstrates our ongoing commitment to excellent patient care.”

     Currently, Dr. Twitty is the only physician in Tampa trained to perform the single-site robotic surgery.

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