Severance Hospital Achieves '30,000 Robot Surgeries' for the First Time at a Single Medical Institution

(Photo by Yonsei University Severance Hospital)

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Yonsei University Severance Hospital has become the first single medical institution in the world to achieve 30,000 robotic surgeries.

Severance Hospital announced on the 15th that on the 2nd, it became the first among leading global medical institutions to reach 30,000 robotic surgeries. This milestone comes 16 years after successfully performing the first surgical operation using a surgical robot in Korea in 2005. Previously, the hospital was the first in the world to achieve 10,000 and 20,000 robotic surgeries in 2013 and 2018, respectively.

This achievement of 30,000 surgeries is the figure for Sinchon Severance Hospital alone, excluding Gangnam Severance and Yongin Severance Hospitals. Currently, Severance Hospital operates a total of eight surgical robot systems, the largest number in Korea, with five units in the main hospital operating rooms and three units in the Yonsei Cancer Hospital operating rooms. So far, 17 clinical departments and over 90 doctors have performed robotic surgeries.

By clinical department, the highest number of robotic surgeries were performed in Surgery (47%) and Urology (37%). Within the Surgery subfields, the most surgeries were conducted in Thyroid and Endocrine Surgery (28%), Gastrointestinal Surgery (9%), and Colorectal Surgery (5%). Additionally, 17 clinical departments including Otolaryngology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Thoracic Surgery, and Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery have performed robotic surgeries.

Notably, Severance Hospital's 30,000 robotic surgeries include the latest single-port robotic surgery system, the 'da Vinci SP'. Utilizing the advantages of this device, surgeries are mainly performed in narrow and deep areas such as thyroidectomy and oral cancer resection, reducing pain and scarring to enhance patient satisfaction. Severance Hospital is also on the verge of securing the world’s first milestone of 2,000 SP robotic surgeries.

Yearly Status of Robotic Surgeries at Yonsei University Severance Hospital (Photo by Severance Hospital)

Severance Hospital is leading not only in clinical achievements but also in academic research and the dissemination of robotic surgical techniques. To date, over 600 papers related to this have been published from Severance Hospital. Through the international academic conference IRSL (International Robotic Surgery Live), it provides a platform to share experiences and explore future directions in robotic surgery.

Moreover, in 2008, the hospital opened Korea’s first robotic training center, providing robotic surgery education to 2,168 participants from 38 countries. The Robotic Endoscopic Surgery Center offers training programs where participants can learn how to use the robotic system and surgical techniques in an environment identical to the operating room. In March, the world’s first specialized SP robotic surgery education center was also opened, becoming a leading institution providing SP robotic surgery training to medical professionals worldwide.

Min Byung-so, Director of the Robotic Endoscopic Surgery Center at Severance Hospital, said, "Achieving 30,000 robotic surgeries as the first single medical institution in the world is a milestone that will strengthen our clinical and research efforts." He added, "Through this, we aim to provide better treatment to patients, nurture future robotic surgery medical professionals through our independent robotic surgery education programs, and contribute to the growth of the robotic surgery industry through industry-academia cooperation."