LVHN Robotic Surgery Program Reaches 35,000 Procedures

It took 14 years for the LVHN robotic surgery program to reach 25,000 procedures. A little more than a year and a half later, the program has surpassed 35,000

By Ted Williams

December 21, 2023

LVHN Robotic Surgery Program Reaches 35,000 Procedures

Michael Pasquale, MD, Physician in Chief, Lehigh Valley Institute for Surgical Excellence

Paul Cesanek, MD, Medical Director, Robotic Surgery, Lehigh Valley Institute for Surgical Excellence

Fourteen years after launching, Lehigh Valley Health Network’s (LVHN) robotic surgery program celebrated its 25,000th procedure in the spring of 2022. At the time, Michael Pasquale, MD, Physician in Chief, Lehigh Valley Institute for Surgical Excellence, made a conservative estimate of seven years for the program to reach 50,000.

“The high number of robotic surgeries we provide means LVHN has the experience to care for you should you need surgical care,” Dr. Pasquale says. “Robotic procedures result in less pain, less blood loss and get you back to being you in less time.”

But it appears Dr. Pasquale didn’t need to be so conservative. A little more than a year and a half later, the 35,000th robotic procedure at LVHN was performed in December. Assuming the current trend continues, 50,000 should occur early in 2025. Maybe even sooner.

“The breadth and depth of the services we offer at the institute and the continuous investment LVHN makes in top quality care leads to the best outcomes possible.” - Michael Pasquale, MD

“It’s a testament to how rapidly robotic surgery has grown at LVHN,” says Paul Cesanek, MD, Medical Director, Robotic Surgery, Lehigh Valley Institute for Surgical Excellence. “LVHN’s administration has been so supportive of our program. We’ve been able to quickly expand our facilities in terms of the technology we’re able to use and the number of specialties we offer.”

Dr. Pasquale emphasizes the importance of administrative support for robotics in terms of offering the best care for patients.

“The more procedures you do, the better robotic surgeon you become,” Dr. Pasquale says. “The breadth and depth of the services we offer at the institute and the continuous investment LVHN makes in top quality care leads to the best outcomes possible.”

When the program launched in 2008, LVHN’s robotic team focused primarily on urologic and gynecologic surgeries using the trailblazing da Vinci Surgical Systems, created by Intuitive Surgical. Techniques have evolved along with various da Vinci system robots, including the S, Si, HD, X and Xi. LVHN is one of few health systems to offer the SP (single port), which is used in delicate surgeries through a 1-inch incision. There are 16 da Vinci robots currently being used throughout LVHN.

Today, the team consists of more than 100 robotic surgeons in 15 specialties. They include:

General surgery
Trauma surgery
Colorectal surgery
Gynecologic surgery
Urologic surgery
Thoracic surgery
Ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgery
Bariatric surgery
Gynecology oncology
Surgical oncology
Urogynecologic surgery
Reproductive surgery
Pulmonary surgery
Spinal surgery
Orthopedic surgery

Dr. Cesanek says spinal surgery, orthopedic surgery and pulmonary surgery also use robots other than da Vinci, including MAKO for knee replacements, VELYS for total joint replacements and ION and MONARCH for pulmonary procedures.

“There will always be occasions when traditional surgery is the best option,” Dr. Cesanek says. “But more and more companies are investing in bringing robotic technologies to additional services. Robotic surgery offers more surgical precision, fewer risks for infection, shorter recovery times and less post-operative pain. It’s just so beneficial for patients.”