For Immediate Release
Date: September 16, 2008
Contact: Charlene Wilkins
(703) 670-1236
Woodbridge, Va. – Potomac Hospital is the first provider of da Vinci® surgery in the Prince William area. Using da Vinci robotic-assisted technology, doctors at Potomac Hospital are performing complex procedures through tiny openings. For our patients, this means shorter hospital stays, faster recoveries, less pain and a quicker return to normal activities. Plus, all the advantages of being close to home.
You can learn more about the da Vinci Surgical System at Potomac Mills Mall on Friday, Sept. 26 from 3:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the mall’s Grand Court (by TJ Maxx).
Currently, urologists Pratik Desai, M.D., and Ek Lou, M.D., are using da Vinci® robotics technology to perform the surgical removal of the prostate gland (prostatectomy). Future plans include using the technology for other types of surgical procedures. With the da Vinci Surgical System, surgeons have state-of-the-art robotic-assisted technology at their fingertips -- their hand movements are mimicked precisely by tiny surgical instruments.
The interactive display at Potomac Mills Mall will allow visitors the opportunity to have a hands-on experience with the actual surgical equipment used at Potomac Hospital and hospitals around the country.
Plus, in observance of Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, Drs. Lou and Desai will be available to answer questions and provide information about the importance of prostate screenings and information for those without health insurance. The American Cancer Society recommends that:
- All men receive a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test and digital rectal examination (DRE) annually, beginning at age 50.
- Men at high risk (African-American men and men with one or more family members diagnosed with prostate cancer before age 65) should begin testing at age 45.
- Men at even higher risk, due to multiple first-degree relatives affected at an early age, could begin testing at age 40.
About Drs. Lou and Desai:
Doctors Lou and Desai are the first physicians at Potomac Hospital to use the new da Vinci® robotic-assisted surgery technology. Dr. Lou is a specially-trained urologist with more than 30 years of surgical experience. His partner, Dr. Desai, is one of the few urologists in the country who has completed a two-year urologic oncology fellowship, with special training in robotics and laparoscopy.
For more information about da Vinci robotic-assisted surgery or prostate cancer awareness, visit potomachospital.com.
