Collin County Living Well Magazine Summer 2014 | Page 37

Single-Site Robotic Gallbladder Surgery– Nothing Galling About It
Courtesy Medical Center of McKinney

E

ver notice how sometimes the smallest things
can make the biggest difference? Such is certainly the case with the Single-Site™  da Vinci®
gallbladder procedures being performed at Medical Center
of McKinney (MCM).
Unlike traditional laparoscopic surgeries that require
three to five small incisions, this new technology allows for
a single one-inch incision in the belly button, through which
instruments are placed and the gallbladder is removed. And
patients who choose single-site da Vinci gallbladder surgery often experience virtually scarless results.
“This is really exciting since the single-site procedure isn’t
limited to a small group of patients,” says David Lambert, M.D., general surgeon on staff at
MCM. “In fact, the vast majority of people who
require gallbladder removal are candidates for
this robotic, single-incision surgery.”
Every year, more than one million Americans undergo gallbladder removal, yet relatively few people really understand what the
gallbladder does.
The gallbladder is a pear-shaped organ located under the liver that stores and concentrates bile to help digest fat. Gallbladder disease
includes inflammation, infection or blockage

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(obstruction) of the gallbladder. The most common blockage is
a gallstone. Gallstones are pebble-like and solid and can be as
large as a golf ball or as sma