Da Vinci Robot Lawsuit Filed Over Botched Hysterectomy

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A Mississippi woman filed a da Vinci robot surgery lawsuit against Intuitive Surgical for injuries she allegedly suffered during a hysterectomy procedure, requiring major surgeries to correct.

Plaintiff Dana McDonald’s da Vinci robot surgery lawsuit said her doctor recommended robotic surgery to perform a hysterectomy after she complained of severe pelvic pain, irregular uterine bleeding, and other gynecological complications.

When the da Vinci robotic systems were released, they were advertised to be more efficient and accurate than human surgeons for hysterectomies. The da Vinci surgical robot was advertised to be less invasive and require less hospital recovery time.

According to the da Vinci lawsuit, several months after McDonald’s surgery in 2012, her surgical wound ruptured, requiring corrective surgery. Four months later, she reportedly had the same problem, and it proved to be more extreme, with medical records in her da Vinci lawsuit describing her bladder literally protruding through her vagina. Immediate revision surgery was required, and required weeks of recovery in the hospital. McDonald still suffers from severe pain, trauma, and severe financial stress. McDonald said in her da Vinci lawsuit that if she had known about the possibility of the da Vinci robot causing these injuries, then she never would have used the device.

McDonald’s lawsuit over da Vinci robotic surgery complications is hardly isolated. The da Vinci Surgical System has been used by surgeons for hysterectomies since its release, and complications during many of those surgeries have resulted in da Vinci lawsuits. The device consists of several components including a high-quality 3D view camera and four remote control arms. These arms are designed to assist the surgeon to make the delicate incisions for hysterectomies, but can cause problems, too. Along with surgical malfunctions, patients who have filed robot surgery lawsuits often complain of being burned or shocked during the surgeries, and allege the surgeons had not been adequately taught how to use them.

The da Vinci Robot Surgery Lawsuit is Dana McDonald v. Intuitive Surgical Inc., in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.