More Complex Procedures with Remarkable Outcomes Performed Using the Latest Robotic Technology

First Robotic Adrenalectomy in the Region.

Just when you think technology cannot advance any more, it does.

Dr. Maher Ghanem, surgeon with CMU Health Division of Surgery, practices at the Covenant HealthCare Center for Advanced Robotic Surgery. He says that additional minimally invasive surgery options are on their way. “We continue to see the technology advance, and our region is really ahead in a lot of ways.”

One of the advancements includes the addition of the da Vinci Xi robot to the Covenant HealthCare Center for Advanced Robotic Surgery. Dr. Ghanem says, “It’s amazing the clarity and precision you can see utilizing this robot and technology; I think we are on the leading edge.”

On March 2, 2016, Dr. Ghanem performed the region’s first adrenalectomy on the new robotic system. “This procedure is complex, and we were all pleased with the outstanding outcome and quality.” An adrenalectomy is a procedure to remove the adrenal glands, the hormone producing glands located above the kidneys. This particular procedure was the first in the area to be done utilizing the robotic technology.

The patient’s surgery was completed by 3:00 pm, and the patient left the hospital at 9:00 am the next day. Due to the precision of Dr. Ghanem paired with the robot, and the efforts of the Covenant surgical team, the patient felt such little pain that he actually stopped and did his grocery shopping on his way home.

Through robotic surgery, many complex surgeries can now be performed in a minimally invasive way. Many of these surgeries were previously performed in an open traditional approach, which is performed through a large incision. With robotic surgery, patients experience less blood loss, small incisions, shorter lengths of stay, and faster recovery. Dr. Ghanem states, “I believe this helps us to deliver the best care for my patients and the community.” Other robotic surgeries Dr. Ghanem has performed includes distal pancreatectomies, hiatal hernia repair with nissen fundoplication, appendectomies, colorectal, ventral and inguinal hernias, single incision surgeries of the gallbladder, and more.

Covenant currently owns three robots that are capable of performing the following types of minimally invasive surgeries: Urologic (such as prostate, kidney), thoracic (such as lobectomy and wedge resections), gynecologic (hysterectomies), and more. To-date, the surgical team at the Covenant HealthCare Center for Advanced Robotic Surgery has worked with local surgeons to perform more than 3,780 surgical cases in Saginaw.

About the Covenant Center for Advanced Robotic Surgery
Covenant Center for Advanced Robotic Surgery began in 2009, offering patients the skilled surgeons and the most advanced robotic technology in the region. By bringing the region’s leading surgeons together with the most advanced da Vinci HD robots, patients experience less pain, fewer complications and shorter recover time, so they can get back to their daily routines faster.

About Dr. Ghanem
Dr. Maher Ghanem completed his medical education at Tishreen University, Syria, and his residency with Central Michigan University. He later completed his fellowship at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD. Dr. Ghanem is Board Certified by the American Board of Surgery - General Surgery. Since August 2013 he has been the Assistant Professor of Surgery at Central Michigan University (CMU) College of Medicine in Saginaw, Michigan also serving as the Director of Surgery Clerkship since July 2014 and employed by CMU Health. He is a member of the American Association of Endocrine surgery (AAES), American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE), American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Society of Surgical Oncology (SSO), and The Detroit Surgical Association (DSA).