UK scientists
create world’s smallest surgical robot using low-cost technology
Scientists in the UK have
developed the world's smallest surgical robot with low-cost technology used in
mobile phones and space industries. The robot, called Versius, mimics
the human arm and can be used to carry out a wide range of procedures in which
a series of small incisions are made to circumvent the need for traditional
open surgery.
These include hernia
repairs, colorectal operations, as well as prostate, ear, nose and throat
surgery. Such procedures reduce complications and pain after surgery and speed
up recovery time for patients. The robot is controlled by a surgeon at a
console guided by a 3D screen in the operating theatre. The robot is much
easier to use than existing systems, and take up about a third of the space of
current machines.
For robots to revolutionise
surgery, they need to be versatile, easy to use and small so that surgical
staff can move them around the operating room or between operating theatres, or
pack them away when they are not being used. “Our robot does all of this and is
the first robotic arm to be designed specifically for laparoscopic surgery,”
said Martin Frost, chief executive of the Cambridge Medical Robotics.
One
of the key benefits of the robot is that it works like a human arm and contains
technology that detects resistance to make sure the right amount of force is
used when the instruments are inside the patient, ‘The Guardian’ reported.
