Intuitive demos 4,000-mile telesurgery with da Vinci 5 surgical robot

Intuitive Surgical demonstrated new telesurgery capabilities for its da Vinci 5 surgical robot. The company remotely connected two surgeons to perform a transatlantic demo at the Society of Robotic Surgery (SRS) conference in Strasbourg, France.

Dr. Doug Stoddard (Peachtree Corners, Georgia) and Dr. Andrea Pakula (Strasbourg) connected remotely through Intuitive. The distance between them spanned more than 4,000 miles. Together, using a dual-console da Vinci 5 system, they performed a telesurgery procedure on an advanced tissue model developed by Intuitive to replicate the behavior of live tissue.

Stoddard had a console alongside the da Vinci 5 patient care and tissue model. In the demo, he passed control of surgical instruments back and forth remotely to Pakula, located at the remote surgeon console. This included force feedback, enabling both surgeons to feel the forces exerted on the tissue model by the instruments.

Intuitive said its telesurgery software on da Vinci 5 remains in development and investigational.

“Telesurgery is an area Intuitive has been thoughtfully innovating in for many years,” said Intuitive CEO Dave Rosa. “It is a capability that has the potential to improve patient access to minimally invasive care, but its success depends on careful development in several areas. At Intuitive we’ve built robotic surgical technology from the ground up and our focus has always been patient safety and delivering real value—not technology for technology’s sake.

“Telesurgery is just one part of our telecollaboration suite, which includes telementoring, teleproctoring, and dual console surgery, that can help clinical teams to improve outcomes and reduce the total cost of care. It’s exciting to see progress, but we’re clear there’s still a long way to go.”

Iman Jeddi, senior VP and GM of Intuitive’s Multiport Platform, will be delivering the closing keynote at RoboBusiness, which takes place Oct. 15-16 in Santa Clara, Calif. and is produced by The Robot Report. The keynote “Redefining the Future of Surgical Robotics” offers a rare look inside the redesign and launch of the da Vinci 5, Intuitive’s next generation surgical robotics system.

With da Vinci 5, Intuitive focused on implementing foundational computing power to unlock a new generation of capabilities—from force feedback and advanced instruments to machine vision that powers the surgeon’s interface and delivers deeper case insights. How does a market leader rethink its flagship system in a competitive, maturing space? And how do you design not just for the present, but for the future of digital surgery? This is a conversation about discipline, platform thinking, and staying ahead in a field that’s quickly catching up.

Intuitive said the first transatlantic procedure highlighted the feasibility of telesurgery all the way back in 2001. Dubbed “Operation Lindbergh,” it also took place between the U.S. and Strasbourg.

“While not a new idea for Intuitive, telesurgery requires a high-performing network infrastructure and a robotic system designed for remote collaboration to be successful and sustainable. Our focus is not on being first but on being rigorous in building the infrastructure to support safety, reliability, and consistent use,” said Brian Miller, Intuitive EVP and chief digital officer, who was an engineer supporting Operation Lindbergh.

This marks another positive development for Intuitive. da Vinci 5, Intuitive’s latest-generation robot, won FDA clearance last year, then picked up CE mark last week. The company began its commercial rollout in the U.S. this year. In May, Intuitive also won FDA clearance for a new indication for its da Vinci single port (SP) system.

Last week the company announced FDA clearance for the latest advanced energy instrumentation for da Vinci. It designed the fully wristed, advanced bipolar electrosurgical instrument to seal, cut, grasp and dissect tissue. The company says it marks the first FDA clearance for its advanced energy instruments for the transection of lymphatic vessels.