Picture this: A human is lying on the operating table for a seemingly routine surgery. The patient is prepped, the nurses are around, all of the equipment is in place. And then, a robot appears? It might seem more like a scene from the latest sci-fi film, but in fact this is the scenario for many operating room around the country. Robots are making their way into operating rooms on a daily basis. And as medical technology increases, scenes like the one above will become common practice.
Robots have, in fact, been in operating rooms for decades. Robots have been used for operations like gallbladder surgery and knee scopes for many years. It’s becoming more common to see robots used for heart surgery, cancer surgery, and even bariatric surgeries. While there is a robot in the operating room appearing to do the work, there is still a doctor there performing every move. The robot simply “assists” the doctor and helps him get to places within the body without a large invasive surgery.
When a robot is used in surgery, the doctor is in the operating room. A tiny camera is then inserted through an incision, sometimes called a port, where the doctor can see what’s going on inside the body from a screen. The doctor guides the robot through the surgery. This type of surgery has proven to be very effective, creating a quicker recovery time and less invasive surgery. What might have taken a huge incision to get inside the knee to see what is going on can now be done with a tiny hole and a camera.
Medical technology is certainly changing the medical field. Robots in the operating room are just the first step. Imagine what could come next?