With a new tool in the hands of surgeons, Knox Community Hospital can now offer surgery with less pain and faster recovery.

The hospital’s da Vinci Xi surgical system will have its first use Thursday, and on Friday it will be in the hands of Dr. Tamara Holzer, D.O., a general surgeon who has approximately six years of experience with such systems.

“It’s just one more step to really being able to do the best for our patients,” she said.

Holzer said the da Vinci is the next step beyond laparoscopic surgery. Though both methods require only small holes into the body, the da Vinci’s additional features could cut recovery time in half for some patients.

“There’s less torque on the skin and the muscles beneath,” Holzer said. That means less pain, less pain medicine and quicker recovery.

The surgeon gets a 3D image from a camera they control, and even the instruments have greater range of movement, she said. Tied into the surgeon’s hand and wrist movements, Holzer can position the articulated instruments around and behind what she’s working on.

The hospital’s surgeons will start with general surgery with the new system, such as colon and hernia surgeries, Holzer said. In the coming months, they plan to expand to gynecological and urological surgeries.

Since coming to KHC a year ago, Holzer has wanted to have a da Vinci system in Knox County, she said.

“We may be a community hospital, but we’ve got everything that the large hospitals in the city have, and you just get more personal care,” Holzer said.

Info: 

Knox Community Hospital 1330 Coshocton Road Mount Vernon, Ohio 43050 Switchboard: 740-393-9000 Online: www.kch.org Appointments: www.followmyhealth.com