WellSpan York Hospital is the only hospital in Pennsylvania offering the latest robotic percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedure
WellSpan Interventional cardiologist Bill Nicholson, MD, sits in front of a computer console and gently grips a white joystick toggle – a nudge to the left, down just a hair – directing a robot as it guides a thin wire to its precise location.
With Dr. Nicholson as its guide, the robot pinpoints a blocked artery in his patient, who lies just feet away on the procedure table. The doctor-and-robot team then unclogs the artery and implants a stent to keep the blood flowing.
Dr. Nicholson has performed the procedure, known as percutaneous coronary intervention, or PCI, countless times – but usually without the aid of a robot. Now, he leads a team of doctors at WellSpan York Hospital, who have become the first – and only – interventional cardiologists in Pennsylvania to use this technology to perform the procedure.
PCI, also known as stenting or coronary angioplasty, is a procedure that improves blood flow to the heart for patients who suffer from a variety of cardiac and vascular diseases or conditions, including chronic total occlusions, or completely blocked arteries. It serves as a less invasive alternative than open heart surgery.
Interventional cardiologists at WellSpan York Hospital perform an estimated 1,350 PCI procedures a year, helping patients from across central Pennsylvania and beyond return to their normal lives. And now the hospital is at the leading edge of robotic PCI technology.
In many ways, Dr. Nicholson and other WellSpan interventional cardiologists are at the heart of this new technology. After all, they helped develop it.
“We have been in consultation with (the manufacturer) Corindus (Vascular Robotics) regarding experimental plans and prototypes,” Dr. Nicholson says. “We gave advice on making the system more user-friendly for the practicing physician.”
The state-of-the-art robot is the newest model available, putting WellSpan York Hospital on the forefront of less-invasive care for complex heart conditions. And it builds on WellSpan physicians’ proven precision, with technology that assists in control and guidance and precisely placing and expanding a stent – down to the millimeter.
“The complexity is through the roof; we have been at the forefront of the robotic experience for several years,” Dr. Nicholson said. “However, patients’ needs are always the first consideration in determining the best approach. While we employ the latest technology, we do it judiciously.”
He added, “We want to deliver the safest procedure to every patient, returning him or her home as swiftly as possible with the best outcome we can provide.”
To learn more about the advanced cardiac care at WellSpan.
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