Robotic-Assisted Surgery

Advanced Technologies for Better Care

To protect our patients and staff, all people entering a BCH care facility will be required to wear a mask (exceptions include children <2 yrs. old or medical reasons such as trouble breathing, unconsciousness, or someone unable to remove a mask without assistance).
*Bandanas, neck gaiters, and masks with valves are not acceptable.

• Mako Robotic-Assisted Orthopedic Surgery
• Mako Procedures Performed at BCH
• Physicians Performing Mako Surgery at BCH
• Da Vinci Xi Robotic-Assisted Surgery
• Da Vinci Xi Procedures Performed at BCH
• Physicians Performing Da Vinci Xi Surgery at BCH
• Mazor X™ Stealth system

Skilled surgeons are critical when it comes to getting the best outcome from advanced robotic-arm-assisted surgical procedures. Our surgeons have been providing these minimally invasive surgeries since this technology was first introduced. In fact, BCH introduced the innovative Mako and da Vinci® systems to Boulder County--and has recently invested in the latest da Vinci Xi™ technology and Mazor X™ Stealth system.

Procedures performed with robotic-assisted surgery systems may offer important benefits compared to open surgery, including:

• Significantly less pain
• Less blood loss
• Less scarring
• Shorter surgery recovery time
• Faster return to normal daily activities

Mako Robotic-Assisted Orthopedic Surgery

Foothills Hospital is the only facility in Colorado to offer the full suite of Mako options for knee and hip surgery, including total knee replacement. Mako robotic-arm-assisted surgery can reduce pain and shorten recovery time, getting you back to the activities you love.

The Mako surgery process starts with a CT scan of the patients' knee joint that is used to generate a 3D virtual model of their unique anatomy. This model is loaded into the Mako system software and is used to create a personalized pre-operative plan that ensures the knee or hip implant's ideal compatibility with each patients' specific anatomy.

Mako Robotic-Assisted Surgery Procedures Performed at BCH

• Partial knee resurfacing
• Total knee replacement
• Total hip replacement

Physicians Performing Mako Surgery at BCH

• Dr. C. Brian Blackwood
• Dr. Austin Chen
• Dr. Dirk Dolbeare
• Dr. Lorri Fulkerson
• Dr. James Rector
• Dr. Michael Repine
• Dr. Erik Bowman
• Dr. Lynn Voss

Da Vinci Xi Robotic-Assisted Surgical Specialties: Cardiovascular, Gynecology, Urology and General Surgery

Foothills Hospital is home to the da Vinci Xi surgical system, the most advanced minimally invasive option for the greater precision called for when performing complex surgeries in the areas of cardiothoracic, colorectal, general, gynecologic and urologic surgery. The Xi system’s enhancements include:

• Sharper 3D-HD visuals (10 times greater than the human eye)
• Four robotic arms that can move in virtually any direction
• Articulating instruments outfitted with technology to minimize blood loss and pain.
• Greater, more intuitive range of motion

The da Vinci Xi system takes even the most experienced, skilled surgeon's human movements and refines them further. If there is a hand tremor, it is able to reduce it. The advanced technology allows surgeons to make micro movements and manipulations on a smaller scale than is possible with hands in real life. Surgeons who use the system have described the experience as enabling them to maintain all six degrees of free-wristed movement while working in the body, and "to literally operate with three `hands' at once."

To perform advanced procedures with da Vinci Xi system, surgeons make very small incisions to insert a tiny high-definition, three-dimensional camera and miniature surgical instruments into a patient’s body. Seated at a large virtual-reality console, your surgeon uses the sharply defined visuals to precisely maneuver hand controls that guide the robotic arms. The arms hold instruments outfitted with cutting-edge bipolar and electrocautery technology to minimize blood loss and minimize pain. Every surgical maneuver can be performed with direct control by your surgeon: the da Vinci surgical system cannot move on its own.

Da Vinci Xi Surgery Procedures Performed at BCH

• Cholecystectomy to remove the gallbladder
• Colectomy to treat colon cancer
• Hysterectomy to remove the uterus
• Mitral valve repair to mend failing heart valves
• Myomectomy to remove uterine fibroids
• Nephrectomy to remove the kidney
• Nissen fundoplication for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
• Nissen fundoplication for hiatal hernia
• Prostatectomy to treat prostate cancer
• Sacrocolpopexy for uterine or pelvic prolapse

Physicians Performing Da Vinci Xi Surgery at BCH

Cardiothoracic Surgery

• Dr. Daniel O'Hair

General Surgery

• Dr. Akin Beckley
• Dr. Susan Hagen
• Dr. Charlie Jones
• Dr. Ross Leibovitz
• Dr. Kyle Marthaller
• Dr. Christopher Pohlman
• Dr. Justin Richardson

Urology Surgery

• Dr. James Clark
• Dr. John Kefer
• Dr. Samuel Melouk
• Dr. Stephen Siegel
• Dr. Carolyn Fronczak

Gynecology Surgery

• Dr. Jeremiah McNamara
• Dr. Brian Nelson

Mazor X™ Stealth system

Boulder-area residents suffering from painful back conditions now have local access to an advanced surgical system that can make complex spine surgery safer and less painful.

Boulder Community Health (BCH) now offers the cutting-edge Mazor X™ Stealth robotic guidance system, which allows BCH spine surgeons to use a less-invasive approach to complex spine surgery. BCH’s Foothills Hospital is the first Colorado hospital north of Denver to offer this revolutionary technology.

Mazor X™ combines proprietary software to plan the surgical procedure, a robotic arm to precisely guide the placement of implants during complicated spine surgery, and real-time imaging feedback to ensure the procedure proceeds as planned. This higher degree of accuracy throughout the surgical procedure can provide better outcomes for patients compared to traditional spine surgery.

Additional advantages of Mazor X™’s minimally-invasive approach include:

• Improved surgical accuracy
• Smaller incisions
• Less risk for complications
• Less exposure to radiation
• Less bleeding
• Shorter hospital stays
• Faster recovery

Boulder Neurosurgical and Spine Associates (BNA) surgeons will use Mazor X™ technology to treat adult patients with a variety of spinal conditions, ranging from degenerative disc disease to scoliosis.

Physicians Performing Mazor X Surgery at BCH

• Kara Beasley, D.O.
• Allan "Tripp" Nanney, M.D.
• E. Lee Nelson, M.D.
• Sharad Rajpal, M.D.
• Alan T. Villavicencio, M.D.

Please view our blog on the Mazor X™ Stealth system to learn more.