🌎 Resumen en español · traducción automática
UK HealthCare realizó el primer trasplante de riñón con robot quirúrgico en Kentucky, utilizando el sistema Da Vinci Xi bajo la dirección del cirujano Dr. Matthew Black en el paciente Jeffrey Johnson de Somerset. Este procedimiento ofrece beneficios significativos como incisiones más pequeñas, menor dolor postoperatorio, recuperación más rápida y menor dependencia de medicamentos para el dolor, lo que es especialmente importante en Kentucky por la crisis de opioides. UK HealthCare se convierte en el primer centro en Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia y sur de Ohio en realizar este tipo de intervención, siendo solo uno de aproximadamente 25 centros de trasplantes en todo el país que realizan procedimientos de trasplante robótico.
Traducción y resumen generados por IA a partir del artículo en inglés. Puede contener errores; consulte el texto original.
LEXINGTON, Ky. — UK HealthCare’s Transplant Center recently performed the first kidney transplant using a surgical robot, marking a significant advancement in minimally invasive transplant surgery for the state and surrounding region.
The procedure, led by transplant surgeon Dr. Matthew Black, used the Da Vinci Xi Surgical System to perform the operation on Jeffrey Johnson of Somerset. According to the Lane Report, the achievement makes UK HealthCare the first facility in Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia and southern Ohio to perform such a procedure. Only about 25 of the nation’s 250 transplant centers actively perform robotic transplant procedures.
The robotic approach offers significant benefits for transplant recipients. Rather than the large incisions required in traditional open surgery, the Da Vinci Xi system enables surgeons to work through smaller incisions while preserving the patient’s core muscles and surrounding nerve tissue. This results in less postoperative pain, faster recovery times and reduced reliance on pain medication—a particularly important advantage in Kentucky, which continues to address the lingering effects of the opioid crisis.
Johnson, the first patient at UK HealthCare to receive a robotic kidney transplant, experienced the benefits firsthand. “I can do a sit-up getting out of bed. I never expected to be in that little pain. I’ve never taken a pain pill,” he said, comparing his recovery favorably to a previous hernia surgery. “I would recommend it to anybody. If I had it to do over again, I would not think twice about using the robot.”
Dr. Roberto Gedaly, director of the UK Transplant Center, emphasized the procedure’s importance for vulnerable patient populations. “Robotic kidney transplantation expands access for patients with morbid obesity, who often face barriers to transplantation,” he said. “Bringing this capability to UK HealthCare is a meaningful step toward more equitable care for Kentuckians.”
Dr. Black noted that immunosuppressed patients with high body mass indexes are particularly prone to wound complications, making the robotic approach valuable. “For our patient population, which is very prone to having a high BMI and being immunosuppressed, this is seen as a major advantage to our program,” he said, citing reduced surgical-site infections and complications requiring wound care as key benefits.
The achievement follows several recent milestones for UK HealthCare’s transplant program. In 2023, the facility performed its first robotic living donor kidney removal. Over the past five years, the hospital’s liver transplant volume has more than doubled, culminating in a record number of transplants in 2025. UK HealthCare now ranks in the top third of transplant centers nationally based on volume.
This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from Lane Report (KY Business), enriched with 2 web searches. The original source is available at https://www.lanereport.com/188067/2026/06/uk-healthcare-performs-kentuckys-1st-robot-assisted-kidney-transplant/.
