On August 3, 2022, AdventHealth Celebration OB/GYN Erica Stockwell, DO, performed the first vaginal-approach hysterectomy in Central Florida using the Anovo™ Surgical System, the first and only FDA-authorized surgical robot designed to enable the minimally invasive transvaginal approach for benign gynecological procedures. Authorized uses include hysterectomy, salpingectomy, oophorectomy, adnexectomy, and ovarian cyst removal.
By incorporating a wrist, elbow and shoulder joint to mimic a surgeon’s movements, Momentis Surgical’s Anovo™ enables a transvaginal approach, providing patients with a quicker return to normal activities compared to abdominal hysterectomy.
“Anovo™ is a hybrid surgical approach that combines the technologic benefits of laparoscopy, like visualization and advanced energy, with the ergonomics of robotics and the optimal patient outcomes of vaginal surgery,” explains Dr. Stockwell.
Among U.S. women of reproductive age, hysterectomy is the second most frequently performed surgical procedure, with approximately 600,000 hysterectomies performed each year. In 2017, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) released a statement that vaginal hysterectomy should be the approach of choice whenever feasible because evidence demonstrates that it is associated with better outcomes when compared with other approaches to hysterectomy. However, the less invasive vaginal approach has been used in only 16 percent of hysterectomies due to anatomical and technical limitations. These findings fueled the development of the Anovo™ system.
“We know vaginal hysterectomy provides the best patient outcomes, but poor visualization and access to the pelvis had inhibited its use,” shares Dr. Stockwell. “The Anovo™ system was specifically designed to overcome these barriers and make the vaginal approach more accessible. We believe this new technology will improve care for our patients who require surgery for benign gynecological conditions like abnormal uterine bleeding, fibroids, endometriosis, chronic pelvic pain, prolapse, pre-cancerous changes, and ovarian cysts. It will provide them with less pain and scarring, reduced infection rates, and a quicker recovery and return to their normal daily lives.”
AdventHealth has plans to be to be a primary site for the ongoing registry of clinical outcomes using the Anovo™ system with Dr. Stockwell serving as Primary Investigator.
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