Robotic surgery 'salvages' kidney

(ANSA) - Turin, February 23 - Doctors at Turin's Molinette hospital said Thursday that they had used robotic surgery to remove an ectopic kidney from a woman and transplant it to another patient on dialysis in a world first. Renal ectopia is a condition in which a kidney is not located in its usual position, leading to chronic pain and infections.
    The kidney is question was functional despite being in a difficult position to reach, close the uterus. Normally the kidney would have been discarded.
    Both the donor and the patient who received the organ, a 51-year-old, are well, doctors said. The hospital said the result was a "happy end to two situations of suffering". The surgery was performed by a team led by Professor Paolo Gontero.
    "Robotic surgery was fundamental in this particular situation was fundamental," said Gontero. "The robot's help enabled us to have the surgical accuracy needed for such a delicate operation".