Sponsored by University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, this program is free and open to the public. Jeffrey Everett, M.D., UI Hospitals and Clinics surgeon and assistant professor of surgery, and Howard N. Winfield, M.D., UI Hospitals and Clinics urologists and UI professor of urology, will present the program.

Known as the da Vinci robotic surgical system, this highly advanced technology allows a surgeon to perform intricate and delicate operations. The doctor sits at a computer console that offers a three-dimensional view of the area to be treated with magnification up to 12 times that of normal vision.

The surgeon uses joystick-like controls to manipulate tiny surgical instruments (one to two centimeters long) that are inserted through small incisions in the patient. The advantages include quicker recovery and healing times, reduced postoperative pain, and less tissue damage during surgery.

This program will focus on how doctors at UI Hospitals and Clinics are using this new precise technology for surgeries, including:

• Mitral valve replacements
• Urological procedures, including radical prostatectomy
• Surgeries of the abdomen, pelvis and chest
• Surgical removal of uterine fibroids

For more information:

Howard N. Winfield, M.D.

da Vinci^® Surgical System