Deakin University in Melbourne has unveiled the HeroSurg robot, which
gives surgeons, for the first time, the sense of touch while they
perform surgery via a computer.
Unveiled on Wednesday at the
Australasian Simulation Congress, the university claims HeroSurg to be a
major breakthrough compared to current technology, which limits robotic
surgery to the sense of sight.
Giving surgeons the added sense of
touch through technology known as haptic feedback means laparoscopic or
keyhole microsurgery will be safer and more accurate by reducing trauma
and lowering the risk of blood loss and infection.
HeroSurg is the world's first robot that provides surgeons the sense of touch
(Deakin University)
HeroSurg was developed in the laboratory at Deakin's Waurn Ponds
campus in Geelong by engineers from Deakin and Harvard, along with
professor Suren Krishnan, who in 2008 became the first Australian
surgeon to use the da Vinci surgical system for ear, nose, and throat
procedures.
Krishnan, from the Royal Adelaide Hospital and an
honorary professor at the Deakin Institute for Intelligent Systems
Research and Innovation (IISRI), said HeroSurg's added sense of touch
improves the ability of surgeons to distinguish between normal tissue
and tissue affected by cancer.
"The major drawback of the current system is the lack of tactile
feedback," Krishnan said in a statement. "Tactile feedback allows a
surgeon to differentiate between tissues and to 'feel' delicate tissues
weakened by infection or inflammation and dissect them more carefully.
Tactile feedback will allow us to use finer and more delicate sutures in
microsurgery."
The project's lead researcher and haptics expert,
Dr Mohsen Moradi Dalvand, said the haptic feedback allows for specific
manoeuvres and diagnoses to be performed with greater confidence.
"HeroSurg's
unique features, which allow it to overcome many of the limitations of
existing robotic laparoscopic systems, include collision-avoidance
capability, modularity, and automatic patient/bed adjustment," Dalvand
said in a statement.
"The automatic collision avoidance enables surgeons to
operate with peace of mind and confidence that there will be no
collision with instruments, the robot's arms, or the laparoscope with
the patient."
Other HeroSurg features include high-resolution 3D
images, an increased range of motion for the surgeon, and a more
ergonomic workstation console.
HeroSurg workstation console. (Deakin University)
HeroSurg workstation console. (Deakin University)
"HeroSurg will assist surgeons to perform demanding surgical
procedures with comfort, accuracy, and safety by providing real-time
collision avoidance for medical instruments, and stereo-endoscopic
vision," Dalvand said.
IISRI director Saeid Nahavandi pointed out
that HeroSurg could even be used remotely, meaning that surgeons could
perform surgery thousands of kilometres away from the patient.
After
laboratory testing in partnership with medical experts, the project is
ready for human trials. Deakin University plans to bring the technology
into the Australian health system over the next few years.
A study last month by medical journal The Lancet found that robots are just as effective as human surgeons
after a trial in the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, which saw 308
men with localised prostate cancer randomly assigned to have either
robotic surgery or open surgery.
"Surgery has long been the
dominant approach for the treatment of localised prostate cancer, with
many clinicians now recommending the robotic method to patients," said
lead author Robert Gardiner, University of Queensland Centre for
Clinical Research, in a statement.
"Many clinicians claim the benefits of robotic technology lead to improved quality of life and oncological outcomes."
The
patients who received surgery via robotics lost less blood during the
procedure, had a shorter stay in the hospital, and reported better
physical quality of life six weeks after the surgery.
Physical
quality of life 12 weeks after the operation was similar between those
operated on by humans and those by robots, with the long-term outcome
yet to be reported.
