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Karadeniz Technical University (KTU) Farabi Hospital has begun performing robotic heart and vascular surgery, with the first two patients coming from Rize and Gümüşhane undergoing the procedure this week. The approach aims to reduce postoperative pain, shorten hospital stays and help patients resume normal activities sooner.

Faculty member Prof. Dr. Ahmet Coşkun Özdemir said robotic surgery minimizes surgical trauma and allows areas that are hard to see in open operations to be viewed up close. The method is used only at KTU Farabi Hospital in the Black Sea region, drawing patients from other provinces.

Smaller incisions, faster recovery

Özdemir, of the KTU Faculty of Medicine's Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, told an AA reporter that one of the biggest advantages of robotic surgery is keeping surgical trauma to a minimum. Two patients were operated on using the method during the week, he said, adding that robotic techniques provide a closer view of areas that are difficult to see in open surgery.

Özdemir said open heart surgery involves cutting the breastbone, which leaves patients unable to lie on their side or drive for some time. Robotic and minimally invasive approaches can reduce those restrictions. "The goal here is to reduce the suffering and pain the patient endures because of the incision," he said. "After the breastbone is cut, we don't want the patient lying on their side or driving for 1.5 to 2 months. We can eliminate those situations."

Shorter stays and earlier return to work

According to Özdemir, discharge times are shorter with these methods. A patient who undergoes a minimally invasive or robotic bypass can leave the hospital driving their own car, and can turn on their side in bed soon after returning home or leaving intensive care. Patients can return to work within about a week to 10 days.

He said the operations are carried out by an experienced team led by Cardiovascular Surgery Specialist Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mehmet Ali Yürük.

Patients report smooth recoveries

Saadet Kiraz, 37, from Rize, was diagnosed with a hole in the heart 8 months ago and was treated for a period at Ahi Evren Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Training and Research Hospital at Trabzon University Faculty of Medicine before being referred to KTU Farabi Hospital for surgery. The hole was closed using robotic surgery, and Kiraz said the recovery process went well, adding that the pain passed after being moved to the ward.

Arif Okur, 60, from Gümüşhane, said three blocked vessels were opened through a robotic bypass operation.

Regional access to robotic cardiac surgery

Özdemir noted that robotic surgery is performed only at KTU Farabi Hospital in the Black Sea region, which is why patients travel to the hospital from other provinces. The hospital began applying the method a short time ago, and the operations from Rize and Gümüşhane were the first cases carried out with it there.

Key takeaways

• KTU Farabi Hospital has started robotic heart and vascular surgery, operating on its first two patients this week
• The method is used only at KTU Farabi Hospital in the Black Sea region, drawing patients from other provinces
• Patients can return to driving and side-sleeping sooner and go back to work within about a week to 10 days
• The two patients, from Rize and Gümüşhane, reported that their recoveries went well