First Dexter surgeries conducted in Germany

Robotic aid can be very beneficial in minimally invasive surgery. Yet only a fraction of hospitals can afford and sustain the investment in a surgical robot. Dexter by Distalmotion was designed and developed to address this fundamental challenge for healthcare systems worldwide. Dexter proposes a new approach tailored to surgeons’ needs, reducing complexity and making robotics more accessible. The associated concept is called on-demand robotics and is based on the principle of flexibly catering to surgeons’ specific preferences and requirements in the OR.

On-demand robotics has recently been adopted in select European countries. First in Switzerland, France, and now the University Hospital Tübingen’s Department for Women’s Health and Gynecology has become the first German OR team to investigate and deploy the concept.

Prof. Dr. med. Diethelm Wallwiener, Prof. Dr. med. Sara Brucker, Prof. Dr. med. Bernhard Krämer and their teams used Dexter in several surgical procedures, including the removal of an ovarian cyst (cyst extirpation), the removal of an ovarian tumour (adnexectomy) and the removal of a patient’s uterus (hysterectomy).

Robotic aid is a supplement in “keyhole surgery“, and a surgical robot is most useful for tasks like dissection and resection that require the highest degree of dexterity and precision. The doctor’s teams drew on support from Dexter for these types of tasks.

Further clinical studies
The extent to which a surgical robot can contribute to optimizing procedure workflows and outcomes needs to be investigated further. To address this, the team in Tübingen will carry out a clinical study in cooperation with Distalmotion. “Following early tests and exploration, we have conducted formal investigations to confirm whether this new concept can deliver its promise. We are mapping out the path to bolster our investigation with additional clinical evidence,” says Prof. Wallwiener

“Our first experiences indicate that on-demand robotics redefines the relationship between surgeon and robot. The concept simplifies robotics, to make it user-friendly and to give us total control of the OR. The idea may seem obvious and simple, but the proverb ‘simplification is the ultimate sophistication’ applies when dealing with the complexities of laparoscopic surgery and robotics,” adds Prof. Brucker.