Rather than standing over the patient and using traditional techniques to perform the surgery, a surgeon using the da Vinci system sits at a console to view an enhanced, true-to-life 3-D image of the surgical field. Using special controllers, the surgeon performs the surgery using hand movements at the console. These movements are relayed by computer to robot-like tools that are specially calibrated to help the surgeon maintain precision. This all happens through incisions that are only 1 to 2 centimeters in size, which means the patient doesn’t have to endure unnecessary damage to healthy muscle and tissue.
