General & Bariatric SurgeryDr. Rakesh DurkhureRobotic & Laparoscopic Surgery

Head - General, MI & Bariatric Surgery, Artemis Hospitals, Gurgaon, India

Part 9 of 12 in Evolution of Robotic and Laparoscopic Surgery to Help Mankind

Robotic Rectopexy for Rectal Prolapse

July 19, 2026

For rectal prolapse, Dr. Durkhure performs suture or mesh rectopexy robotically, entering the avascular “holy plane” in the pelvis under magnification that lets him identify and preserve every nerve while dissecting. A dumbbell-shaped mesh fixes the rectum posteriorly with sutures and anteriorly to the sacral promontory.

In one recent case, a patient's rectum had prolapsed roughly six inches; it was corrected in a single robotic procedure. The precision the robotic wrist allows in this deep, narrow part of the pelvis is a large part of why this repair has moved from open surgery to a robotic one.

This guide is based on a live Jivo Masterclass — Dr. Rakesh Durkhure taught doctors across Africa on July 19, 2026.

FROM THE LIVE Q&A

HO

Host (Varun, Jivo Healthcare)

Can GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro replace the need for bariatric surgery?

RD

Dr. Rakesh Durkhure

The two have a complementary role, not a replacement one. Weekly injectable GLP-1 drugs aren't a permanent cure, and if a patient's BMI is above 45 or 50, injections alone won't take them from 150 kg to 75 kg — that needs a definitive, more durable intervention. But if someone just wants to go from 100 kg to 85 kg, injections are the right option and no surgery is needed. I sometimes even use GLP-1 injections for two to three months before surgery, to bring a patient's BMI down to a level the anaesthesiologist is comfortable with — so the two approaches often work together.

See all 6 questions from this masterclass →

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Frequently Asked Questions

How do you treat stress urinary incontinence robotically?

In females the urethra is only about 4 centimetres long, and incontinence happens when the internal urethral meatus — where the urethra meets the bladder — sags downward and loses muscular control. My job is to lift that junction back into its correct anatomical position, using a procedure called Burch colposuspension: three sutures on each side of the urethra along the anterior vaginal wall, lifted and fixed to Cooper's ligament. Doing this robotically lets me suture in that very narrow retropubic space with far more precision than laparoscopically. The surgery takes about an hour and the patient goes home happily the next day.

If a patient follows the lifestyle recommendations properly after sleeve gastrectomy, is there still a chance of weight regain?

No. If the lifestyle is maintained correctly — diet, exercise, behaviour — there is no chance of weight regain. It's entirely lifestyle-related.

How can healthcare professionals in other countries help patients access this kind of technology, especially given financial constraints?

I can teach laparoscopic surgery in one to two months to any doctor or surgeon who wants to travel to India — I can generate good surgeons, and at least my students say I'm a good teacher. For the financial and logistical side of a patient's journey, that's where Jivo's team comes in: share the case with us, and even before a patient decides to travel, the hospital can give a tentative cost estimate to work from.

For the sleeve gastrectomy slide, what does ‘two-year recurrence’ actually mean — is it temporary?

The ‘recurrence’ there refers to regain of body weight, not recurrence of disease. It happens when the patient's lifestyle doesn't change after surgery — the sleeve gradually dilates over time, though the stomach never reverts to its original size. When that happens, we convert the sleeve into a mini gastric bypass, and the patient starts losing weight again.

What are the complications of robotic thyroidectomy compared with conventional open thyroidectomy?

Think of it like Formula One racing — an F1 driver put on a city road will crash everywhere, and a city driver put on an F1 track won't know how to handle it. Every surgical approach needs specific training, and with the right training complications are very few. The key criterion is size: if the thyroid nodule or lobe is under 6 centimetres, I do it robotically or laparoscopically; above that, I advise open surgery regardless of cosmetic preference. In every case I identify the recurrent laryngeal nerve on both sides and all four parathyroid glands before removing the thyroid — the rule is, don't touch what you haven't seen.

What surgical plane is entered during robotic rectopexy?

The avascular "holy plane" in the pelvis, entered under magnification that lets the surgeon identify and preserve every nerve while dissecting.

How is the mesh positioned during rectopexy?

A dumbbell-shaped mesh fixes the rectum posteriorly with sutures and anteriorly to the sacral promontory.

How severe can rectal prolapse be and still be treated in a single robotic procedure?

In one case a patient's rectum had prolapsed roughly six inches, and it was corrected in a single robotic procedure.

Why has rectopexy moved from open surgery to a robotic approach?

The precision the robotic wrist allows in this deep, narrow part of the pelvis is a large part of why this repair has moved from open surgery to a robotic one.

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