Are you on Bypass Longer with Davinci

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ryen0

ryen0

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 2, 2008
Messages
240
Location
Atlanta
I get emails from time to time and see posts on this forum of people asking if you are on the heart/lung machine longer with davinci robotic surgery. I wanted to find out the answer once and for all for all the people waiting for mitral valve repair surgery. This is the reply i got from my surgeon's (Dr. Douglas Murphy) office.

In answer to your question, no, you are not on the heart/lung machine longer with robotic surgery. According to Dr. Murphy, when they first started doing robotic surgery back in 2002, the heart/lung machine time was a little longer just they were new to doing the procedure. As the surgical expertise increased, the heart/lung machine time decreased and became the same which is approximately 90 minutes. The heart/lung machine time is a big myth that many people ask about, and I love being able to debunk myths. :)

Thank you,
Stephanie Brunner
Robotic Surgery Coordinator for Dr. Doug Murphy
Peachtree Cardiovascular & Thoracic Surgeons, P.A.
5665 Peachtree Dunwoody Road
Clinical Specialty Center, Suite 150
Atlanta, Georgia 30342

I don't want untrue worries to be a decider for people choosing their surgery route. Of course davinci isn't for everyone, but i would fully recommend this as the way to go if you can do it. It is the SAME exact surgery you would get with open chest, but the complications are less likely and the recovery time is much quicker. Besides all that, the reason i chose it is because it gives a 90% or higher chance of the valve being repaired rather than replaced. I hope this helps people who are researching minimally invasive procedures for heart surgery. If anyone wants to know more about my particular experience please feel free to send me a message.
 
I too asked the question of time difference on the pump on a "chat" on the CC website....the response "not in the hands of a skilled surgeon".....I had a consult with a surgeon at CC who does not do the da Vinci and he told me if the time were any longer it would be "minimal" and the benefit of up and around and out of the hospital is a benefit to be considered as well. He also told me that my "prolapse is of the posterior leaflet.....the entry from the back of the heart will provide a better view". Many minimally invasive procedures do not use the DaVinci....but do use the side entry. My surgeon tells me that he will decide the AM of the surgery the "safest" method. I believe it is best to do your research (on VR, of course) and then meet with the surgeon "armed" with your questions.
 
And what did your itemized bill indicate?

Would probably need stats from several such patients' bills and compare them with the same from people who had traditional surgery, all within the same time frame, of course. (Comparing someone's pump time from 2003 would not be the same from 2009.)
 
I don't remember seeing anything on the bill saying exactly how long i was on bypass. Of course i didn't read through the whole thing. My point was just that there is no reason to think that you are on it longer with robotic than you are with traditional open chest.
 
Ryen0's message from Dr Murphy states

"and became the same which is approximately 90 minutes. The heart/lung machine time is a big myth that many"

so 90 minutes must be the average???? Does anyone on here know how long they were on...recently? ...comparative surgery? I did not ask expected time....but is something I can ask when I have my next meeting with the surgeon.
 
ryen0 said:
I don't remember seeing anything on the bill saying exactly how long i was on bypass. Of course i didn't read through the whole thing. My point was just that there is no reason to think that you are on it longer with robotic than you are with traditional open chest.
Click to expand...

I'm not that familiar with robotic surgery times.

Itemized hospital bills indicate time in the OR, on specialized equipment, under anesthesia, etc., since charges for those are usually, if not always, based on time used. (My veterinarian does the same with billings at her clinic.)
 
Often times those times are "rounded" when I worked in the accounting department at a hospital many services were billed by time.....rounding was anywhere from 15 min to one hour (same day surgery units).....the CC surgeon (who does not do minimal invasive) told me the difference would be less than 25 minutes....the one who does answered on the cat "the same".....appears to be minor???
 
ponytaila1a said:
Ryen0's message from Dr Murphy states

"and became the same which is approximately 90 minutes. The heart/lung machine time is a big myth that many"

so 90 minutes must be the average???? Does anyone on here know how long they were on...recently? ...comparative surgery? I did not ask expected time....but is something I can ask when I have my next meeting with the surgeon.
Click to expand...

I was wondering that as well. My entire surgery was a couple hours so that seems like it would be about right. I don't know how long specifically i was on, but i'll try to find out. That doesn't seem terribly long considering it's complex surgery.
 
I too had minimal invasive surgery using the DaVinci robot. I was unable to determine the length of time I was on the heart/lung from my bill but since I had a friend handling parts of the surgery I will check out his thoughts on the time on the machine for either surgery. I do suspect the robot allows more repair opportunities which may mean longer than average time on the machine. My surgery took 6 hours and I know I was on the machone longer than 90 minutes. Regardless I am proud to be on this side of the mountain.:)
 
Cleveland Clinic is having a web chat on June 2 to discuss minimal invasive surgery.
That may be a good place to ask.....you can register to submit a question at Cleveland Clinic.org and go to web chats. Sorry I was not able to copy the link....perhaps someone with more tech expertise will be able to do that.
 
Interesting. I found this. It's a year old, though: http://www.everydayhealth.com/blog/...ush-and-aortic-valve-disease/?comment_id=4999
24. Mar 14 2009
12:06 pmThis is for Mr. P. Henry who asked about Da Vinci sugery for the aortic valve. At this time, the Da Vinci robotic system is approved by the FDA only for mitral valve surgery. Doctors can use it for other procedures, but there is less overall experience. The most important question you should ask your surgeon is how many aortic valve procedures he/she has done with the Da Vinci unit, as compared for example, to mitral valve procedures, and what the outcomes have been. You want someone who has had a lot of experience using Da Vinci for the aortic valve.
Dr. Z
Click to expand...

I'm sure it's been done.

Best wishes,
 
I would imagine if you get a copy of your medical records from the hosptial, it would state in there how long you were on the heart/lung machine.
 
The itemized statement from the hospital will also state how long you were in the OR. The longer the surgery, the higher the charge. I think the hospital's statement indicates time under anesthesia, also based on time, but you get a separate statement for professional services from the anesthesiologist.
 
I didn't see any times on my bill, but now am curious and will look again. When I first met with the surgeon he estimated my surgical time would be 3 hours, with about one hour on the pump. He was right about the total time, so probably was right about the pump time too.

Pat
 
In our hospital the heart-lung bypass machines are owned and operated by a company independent of the hospital. I therefore received a separate bill just for this part of the procedure. It states, amongst others, "continous operation of extra corporeal equipment 1hr". The anaesthetist's bill stipulates 5 and a half hours, so I presume that is how long the operation lasted. My wife confirms this as the time it took before they wheeled me out again. I had a traditional sternotomy AVR and one CABG during 2009...
 
Upon discharge, the Cleveland Clinic gave me the entire surgeon's report after my DaVinci assisted mitral valve repair. Time on bypass was 87 minutes.
 
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