Surgical Technology

Unlike major surgical procedures, interventional radiology (IR) treatments are done through one or more small incisions with minimal pain and a shorter recovery time. The interventional radiology team uses the BiPlane for image guidance during cancer treatment. A long needle is inserted directly into the tumor site and delivers either hot or cold energy to burn or freeze a tumor. 

Another treatment option creates a pinhole incision in the groin or wrist and a catheter is inserted to deliver high doses of chemotherapy or radiation directly to the tumor site. The IR team works closely with the oncologists at Lovelace Cancer Center to treat patients with various tumors, such as tumors of the liver, kidney, bone, soft tissue and lungs or tumors that have traveled to the liver from somewhere else in the body. 

Imaging capabilities

BiPlane imaging uses digital X-ray technology with two flat-panel rotating cameras, providing a detailed 3D portrait of the patient’s blood vessel and soft tissue anatomy. This technology allows physicians to map blood flow through the vessels in real time and quickly determine blockages or malformation. 

Procedures and treatment

Interventional radiology is a medical specialty that uses image guidance to offer minimally invasive procedures for a variety of diseases as an alternative to traditional surgery. It can also be a solution for patients who want an alternative to traditional surgery or who are not strong surgical candidates. Our IR team uses the BiPlane in various procedures for the treatment of many conditions, including:

• Blood clots
• Cancer
• Deep vein thrombosis
• Fibroids
• Needle biopsy
• Pain relief
• Pelvic congestion syndrome
• Prostate artery embolization
• Pulmonary embolism
• Selective internal radiation therapy
• Stroke
• Uterine artery embolization
• Varicoceles & male infertility
• Varicose veins
• Vertebral fractures
• Vertebroplasty

For more information, or to schedule an appointment please call 505.727.8255.

The Genius 3D mammography exam is a more accurate procedure in the fight against breast cancer. Greater accuracy means better breast cancer detection and a reduced chance of additional screenings. The Genius exam is the only mammogram proven to:

• Detect breast cancers 15 months earlier
• Find 41% more invasive cancers than conventional mammography alone
• Reduce unnecessary callbacks by up to 40%

A 3D exam allows doctors to examine your breast tissue layer by layer. Instead of viewing all of the complexities of your breast tissue in a flat image, as is done with conventional 2D mammograms, fine details are more visible and no longer hidden by the tissue above or below.

The process of a 3D mammogram is the same as your conventional 2D exam. The technologist will position you, compress your breast, and take images from different angles. There’s no additional compression required with the Genius 3D mammography exam, and only requires a few extra seconds to receive a more accurate reading of the breast tissue.

The technologist will view the images of your breasts at the computer workstation to ensure quality images have been captured for review. A radiologist will then examine the images and report results to either your physician or directly to you.

For more information, or to schedule your exam, please call 505.727.6900.

The da Vinci Surgical System allows surgeons to offer an effective, minimally invasive option for complex surgical procedures. Small 1-2 centimeter incisions are used to introduce miniaturized wristed instruments and a high-definition 3D camera. Your surgeon views a magnified, high-resolution 3D image of the surgical site. At the same time, state-of-the-art robotic and computer technologies scale, filter and seamlessly translate your surgeon’s hand movements into precise micro-movements of the robotic instruments. The system requires that every surgical maneuver be performed with direct input from your surgeon.

Lovelace Women’s Hospital is the first hospital in New Mexico to have earned the Surgical Review Corporation’s Center of Excellence in Robotic Surgery (COERS). The COERS program was developed to recognize surgeons and facilities worldwide performing robotic procedures and achieving defined standards for patient safety and care quality. The surgeons who are part of our Center of Excellence in Robotic Surgery as Master Surgeons are the first in New Mexico to achieve this designation and we are proud to recognize their achievements.

We use the da Vinci Surgical System to treat a variety of conditions, including:

• Bladder cancer
• Cervical and uterine cancer
• Colon and intestinal surgery
• Endometriosis
• Gallbladder issues
• Kidney disorders or cancer
• Menorrhagia or excessive bleeding
• Prostate cancer
• Simple to complex hernia repairs, including complex abdominal wall hernias
• Stomach repairs
• Urinary blockage
• Uterine fibroids
• Uterine prolapse

The Globus ExcelsiusGPS offers the next revolution in robotic spine surgery for back pain relief. Robotic surgery improves accuracy and optimizes patient care by using a state-of-the-art combination of robotics and navigation. This technology offers a less invasive option for spine surgery, a reduction in radiation exposure for both the patient and the surgeon and a faster recovery period.

Our interventional and surgical services are backed by state-of-the-art technology and surgical suites, and a team of outstanding physicians and surgeons. Our catheterization and electrophysiology labs and dedicated cardiovascular operating room assist our physicians in optimizing patient outcomes. The hybrid operating room (OR) at Heart Hospital of New Mexico is equipped with advanced imaging services that allows our heart team to integrate minimally-invasive procedures with surgical capabilities.

As the largest and most advanced endovascular operating room in the Southwest, the hybrid OR strives to be an educational pillar. The goal for the space is to provide multiple education opportunities both to staff, local students and international physicians. Cases can be viewed in the OR with state of the art sound and image systems, from the observation deck or broadcast via livestream with advanced production and filming capabilities. Heart Hospital of New Mexico has worked to train and educate physicians from Canada, Central and South America, China, and Mexico. 

Hybrid procedures may include:

• Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm repair (AAA)
• Cardiac lead extraction
• Limb salvage
• Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR)
• Transcarotid Artery Revascularization (TCAR)

In recent years, a new approach has been gaining ground in the treatment of breast cancer. Radical surgical methods are being replaced by less-invasive, breast conserving therapy. This trend is now also appearing in radiotherapy. For certain patients, radiation oncologists are moving away from the current, largely standardized treatment plan to risk-adapted, tailored radiotherapy using intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT).

During the operation and immediately after the tumor is excised, an approximate 30 minute irradiation procedure is performed. The miniaturized linear accelerator has been uniquely designed to generate the spherical dose distribution emitted from the center of the probe tip. This means that the therapeutic dose can be targeted at the area of interest only, therefore sparing healthy tissue.

Prior to every treatment, a two-step quality control check ensures that all parameters such as isotropy, internal radiation monitor, and dose output do not exceed the tolerances defined during calibration. A completely shielded, manually adjustable ZEISS INTRABEAM Water Phantom can be used to verify the depth dose curve and isotropy.

For patients needing short or long-term mechanical circulatory support, the HeartMate 3 can make a meaningful difference in their lives. Its purpose is to decrease heart failure symptoms in patients with end stage heart failure. The LVAD does not replace the heart, but assists moving blood through the body in order to improve energy, increase stamina, and allow for patients to live a better quality of life.

Lovelace utilizes the Full MagLev Flow Technology in conjunction with the HeartMate 3 LVAD. This advanced technology protects the blood as it flows through the pump, further minimizing hemocompatibility-related adverse events and complications.

By offering clinical independence in patient management, The HeartMate Touch Communication System provides security, flexibility and clinically relevant information with a system that is intuitive and user-friendly for LVAD patient care. This system gives the provider the ability to program system parameters such as pump speed. In addition it allows the surgeon to assess and track alarm systems, while being allowed to view, save, and track performance data.

If you’re one of the millions of Americans suffering from pain caused by arthritis or an injury to the knee or hip, and you haven’t experienced relief with traditional treatment options, MAKO robotic arm-assisted surgery may be right for you.

MAKO SmartRobotics  is an innovative solution for many who are suffering from painful arthritis. It’s important to talk to your Lovelace Medical Group provider about the reason for your joint pain so you can understand the treatment options available to you. Pain from arthritis and joint degeneration can be constant, or come and go, occur with movement or after a period of rest, or be located in one spot or many parts of the body. If you haven’t experienced adequate relief with those treatment options, you may be a candidate for MAKO SmartRobotics for total knee, total hip, or partial knee replacement.

How it works

MAKO SmartRobotics uses 3D CT-based planning software so your surgeon knows more about your anatomy to create a personalized joint replacement surgical plan. This 3D model is used to pre plan and assist your surgeon in performing your joint replacement procedure.

In the operating room, your surgeon follows your personalized surgical plan while preparing the bone for the implant. The surgeon guides MAKO’s robotic arm within the predefined area, and MAKO AccuStop technology helps the surgeon stay within the planned boundaries created with the personalized preoperative plan. By guiding your doctor during surgery, MAKO AccuStop technology allows your surgeon to cut less by cutting precisely what’s planned to help protect your healthy bone.

It’s important to understand that the surgery is performed by an orthopedic surgeon, who guides MAKO’s robotic arm during the surgery to position the implant in the knee and hip joints. MAKO SmartRobotics does not perform surgery, make decisions on its own or move without the surgeon guiding it. MAKO SmartRobotics also allows your surgeon to make adjustments to your plan during surgery as needed.

Building on Leksell Gamma Knife precision and adding new technology, Leksell Gamma Knife Icon gives clinicians the option to perform single or fractionated frame-based or frameless treatments, allowing for more individualized delivery— without sacrificing precision and accuracy. Addressing the growing radiosurgery market, Icon makes Leksell Gamma Knife radiosurgery more flexible and easier to use, allowing more clinics to build an intracranial radiosurgery program.

Leksell Gamma Knife Icon is the most precise radiosurgery device on the market, limiting radiation dose to healthy tissue. Icon is the only technology with micro radiosurgery capabilities, allowing for the treatment of virtually any target in the brain with ultrahigh precision.

Icon introduces a number of innovations, such as integrated imaging and software to continuously control dose delivery. It also makes it possible to treat patients without a minimally invasive fixation while assuring the same highest level of precision for which Gamma Knife is known. Addressing the growing radiosurgery market, Icon makes Gamma Knife radiosurgery more flexible and easier to use, allowing more clinics to build an intracranial radiosurgery program.

The Gamma Knife Center of New Mexico located at Lovelace Medical Center is the only hospital in New Mexico offering patients radiosurgery using the Leksell Gamma Knife Icon, the most refined tool for the treatment of the human brain.

Lovelace Medical Center is the only hospital in New Mexico offering patients radiosurgery using the Perfexion Gamma Knife, the most refined tool for the treatment of the human brain. This clinically proven technology minimizes pain and represents a true breakthrough for patients who are candidates for stereotactic brain radiosurgery – surgery without a scalpel.

What to expect

A day or two before the procedure, a specially trained Gamma Knife nurse will call the patient to cover any preoperative instructions, review the Gamma Knife procedure and answer questions. Patients will have the opportunity to tour the Gamma Knife facility prior to treatment. Our clinical staff is trained to address patients’ concerns and to thoroughly explain the details of the procedure and its effect before, during and after treatment.

The actual Gamma Knife treatment phase can last from several minutes to several hours depending upon the number of doses required and the complexity of the plan. With the latest Gamma Knife technology, treatment times have been drastically reduced – an average savings of between 30 minutes to an hour per patient. In most cases, patients will go home one to two hours after treatment.

Patients can return to normal activities within a couple of days. The effects of Gamma Knife treatment take effect over time; weeks to months, so depending on the diagnosis, patients will not require follow-up for up to several months.

If you are a physician and would like your patient evaluated, or if you’re a patient and would like to learn more about Gamma Knife treatment, please call 505.727.8288.