Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi pioneers robot-assisted kidney transplant in UAE

UAE—For the first time in the UAE, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, a multispecialty hospital on Al Maryah Island in Abu Dhabi, UAE, and its Cleveland Clinic in the United States have successfully performed three robot-assisted kidney transplants.

These groundbreaking treatments have been carried out on three UAE national patients who had been diagnosed with end-stage renal disease, marking a significant milestone in the region’s healthcare environment.

This also demonstrates Abu Dhabi’s dedication to modernizing the healthcare sector with advanced technology.

The three operations are the result of a collaborative effort between Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi’s Dr. Bashir Sankari, Institute Chair of the Surgical Subspecialties Institute, and Dr. Waleed Hassen, Department Chair of Urology

Dr. Georges-Pascal Haber, Professor and Enterprise Chair of Urology, and Dr. Mohamed Eltemamy, Lead Robotic and Kidney Transplant Surgeon, were also participating from the Cleveland Clinic in the United States.

The robotic surgical technology used for these procedures enables highly precise and less invasive surgeries, signalling a paradigm shift in medicine and healthcare.

Its advantages include less pain, less blood loss, fewer scars, faster healing times, lower infection risk, and better clinical outcomes.

Additionally, the surgeon could operate a console that displays a high-definition 3D view of the operative site.

Specialized devices attached to robotic arms mimicked the surgeon’s movements with a wider range of motion and finer control.

Furthermore, the surgeon’s directions were translated in real time to carry out exceedingly sophisticated surgeries with unparalleled accuracy.

According to Dr. Haber, this combined accomplishment of executing three complicated kidney transplants using robotic procedures in the UAE demonstrates the progress gained in living-related transplantation.

He also stated that Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi has been at the forefront of providing complex, technologically advanced, world-class care to patients in the UAE and the region, and he expressed his pride in introducing cutting-edge innovation to improve patient outcomes and save more lives.

Dr. Sankari, for his part, praised the initiative to establish the country’s first and only multi-organ transplant center, and committed to continuing to invest in innovative technology and skills to provide outstanding patient experiences and outcomes.

He emphasized that the adoption of robot-assisted kidney transplantation will reaffirm their position as an innovator in healthcare, raising the overall standard of medical practice both locally and in the wider region. This, in turn, assures patients with end-stage kidney disease of new opportunities for personalized care.

The Cleveland Clinic achieved a significant milestone in 2019 when it performed the world’s first successful robotic single-port kidney transplant.

This new approach, initially developed for prostatectomies and kidney cancer treatments, has been adopted for kidney transplant patients with the primary goal of minimizing incision size and post-surgery discomfort.