Urologist in Wuhan operates on Hyderabad patient

Dr. Syed Mohammed Ghouse, an Indian urologist working from Tongji Hospital in Wuhan, remotely operated on a patient in Hyderabad in a robot-assisted bladder reconnection procedure that was reported on May 24. The operation took about 90 minutes and linked a surgical console in Wuhan with an operating room in Hyderabad nearly 3,000 km away, according to reports citing China Daily. Yu Jing, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in India, also described the case in a May 23 post on X as a robot-assisted ureteral reimplantation performed with China-developed robotics and 5G technology. ### Who was the surgeon and where was the patient? Syed Mohammed Ghouse was identified in multiple reports as the surgeon controlling the procedure from Wuhan, while the patient was in Hyderabad. Tongji Hospital in Wuhan coordinated the operation with a medical team in Hyderabad, according to China Daily as cited by NDTV, The Tribune and other outlets. (ndtv.com) May 24 reports described the surgery as a bladder reconnection procedure, while Yu Jing’s post and several follow-on reports called it a ureteral reimplantation. Those descriptions point to a reconstructive urology procedure, but the published accounts did not provide the patient’s identity, age or underlying diagnosis. ### How was the operation carried out across two countries? (ndtv.com) Doctors in Wuhan and Hyderabad reviewed the patient’s records online before the procedure and mapped the movement path for the robotic arms, the reports said. In Hyderabad, local clinicians administered anaesthesia and positioned the robotic equipment in the operating theater before Ghouse began operating from the console in Wuhan. (ndtv.com) The robotic system used fine surgical instruments and high-definition 3D cameras that sent live images to Wuhan. From the console, Ghouse viewed magnified 3D images and controlled the robotic arms remotely while Hyderabad staff remained in the room in case an emergency required them to take over. ### What role did the network connection play? The 5G link transmitted instructions within 200 milliseconds, according to the China Daily account cited by several outlets. (ndtv.com) Those reports said the robotic arms mirrored the surgeon’s hand movements almost instantly, which allowed the procedure to continue in real time despite the distance between Wuhan and Hyderabad. A 2024 conference report on telesurgery said reliable, high-speed, low-latency networks are a foundation for remote procedures because lag can affect surgical precision and safety. That broader technical context matches the emphasis in the May 24 reports on 5G latency and real-time visual feedback. ### Was this a one-off case or part of a larger event? The Hyderabad case was reported as one of 26 surgeries demonstrated during the 10th Congress of the Chinese Chapter of the International Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association. (ndtv.com) Five of those operations involved live international remote connections with specialists from India, Brazil, Georgia, Greece and Uzbekistan, according to the same reports. (link.springer.com) Chen Xiaoping, director of surgery at Tongji Hospital and identified in reports as one of the program’s initiators, said a technological shift driven by AI, 5G and 6G communications and robotics was becoming integrated with healthcare. The published reports did not give a timetable for follow-up cases involving Hyderabad or name the hospital on the India side. (tribuneindia.com) ### What is verified, and what remains unclear? May 24 media reports and Yu Jing’s May 23 post align on the core facts: Ghouse operated from Wuhan, the patient was in Hyderabad, the procedure lasted about 90 minutes, and the system relied on robotic controls and 5G connectivity. The original social post cited in early circulation was not accessible in the reporting reviewed here, but the case itself was separately described by multiple news outlets citing China Daily and by the Chinese Embassy spokesperson in India. (tribuneindia.com) The next public details are likely to come from Tongji Hospital, China Daily, or additional statements from participating doctors or hospitals in Hyderabad, which had not been identified by name in the reports reviewed on May 25. (ndtv.com)