Doctors perform robotic surgery in India

CHENNAI: A team of cardiac surgeons at the Chettinad Health City here has performed what is claimed to be the world's first simultaneous replacement of two heart valves through robotic technology, a team doctor said here.

Dr. R. Ravi Kumar, the Director of the Institute of Cardiovascular Disease at the Chettinad Health City, said the robotically assisted procedure involved replacing both the mitral and the aortal valve simultaneously.

The surgery carried out on D. Vijayakanth, an auto driver from Vellore, was done by a three armed robot, took four hours and cost Indian 225,000 rupees (4,500 U.S. dollars).

Robotic surgery, which is fairly new in the country, can be used for a gamut of medical procedures, said Dr Ravi Kumar.

'This is the first time in the world a double valve replacement heart surgery was performed with the assistance of a robot - Da Vinci,' R. Ravi Kumar said.