MidState Medical Center Unveils New Hybrid Operating Room
November 20, 2013
The world's next generation of imaging and surgical technology arrived in Connecticut on Oct. 29 with the opening of MidState Medical Center's sophisticated new hybrid operating room. MidState is one of only four centers in the country to have the advanced system, known as a GE Discovery IGS 730.
The new hybrid O.R. features advanced imaging capabilities that allow MidState vascular surgeons to perform a wide range of complex vascular and endovascular procedures with unprecedented precision and safety. "With this technology, we can create three-dimensional images and use them to navigate in real time as we operate," says Jonathan Hasson, M.D., the leader of MidState's vascular program. "We always draw from our knowledge and extensive previous experience, but improved imaging provides an added layer of certainty. It helps us more intelligently prune our decision tree as we operate."
The system's superior imaging contributes to shorter procedures, less use of contrast medium and reduced radiation exposure. "That's great for the patient and great for the surgical team," Dr. Hasson says.
The hybrid O.R. is ideal for a variety of interventional and minimally invasive procedures, including angiography, coiling of aneurysms, endovascular repairs of the aorta or the carotid artery, stenting, and nonsurgical treatment of complex peripheral vascular disease, including limb salvage and diabetic foot problems. Because the imaging capability is so advanced, doctors can better treat conditions such as blood clots in deep veins or the lungs.
One major advantage of the hybrid O.R. is that patients can be diagnosed and treated in one sitting, so they have anesthesia only once. Another is that, if a procedure can't be completed using an endovascular approach, the surgical team can immediately convert to conventional, open surgery without having to schedule a second procedure and anesthetize the patient a second time. "The beauty of the hybrid O.R. is that it offers the highest level of sterility. Because of that, and because we always have an anesthesiologist present, we can perform endovascular and open procedures right in the same room," Dr. Hasson explains.
The Discovery IGS 730 is the world's first mobile interventional imaging system. It employs a C-arm configuration that allows X-rays of the patient to be done during the procedure. While in older systems, the C-arm is fixed to the floor or ceiling, the Discovery IGS 730 has the C-arm mounted on a laser-guided "robot" that can be rolled into place when needed, repositioned as required and then moved completely out of the surgical area when not in use. "This is a major advantage, because it frees up space around the patient," Dr. Hasson says. "With the C-arm out of the way, the surgical team has unobstructed access to the patient. The anesthesiologist, for example, can manage the patient's airway without having to work inside the C-arm." The new C-arm can also accommodate larger patients.
The hybrid O.R. was acquired to meet the needs of MidState's communities. Dr. Hasson expects that the room will be used for approximately 800 procedures in its first year. "This facility is a testament to this hospital's commitment to being at the forefront of cutting-edge technology," Dr. Hasson says.