Next-generation surgical robotics stand poised for global revolution

The adoption of robot-assisted surgery has increased significantly in the past decade as opportunities for performing minimally invasive procedures have multiplied.

- Neeraj Nitin Jadhav

Robotic-assisted interventions as a proportion of the total number of surgeries have witnessed strong uptake among hospitals, especially in both developed and developing countries such as the United States, Japan, South Korea, China and India. Surgical robotic platforms facilitate more precise surgeries and improve the repeatability of procedural movements. These benefits support faster recovery and better outcomes for patients, which has helped drive their adoption among healthcare providers.

In spite of the many advantages, surgical robotic platforms have drawbacks. Legacy surgical robots involve a large setup that consumes significant space in the operating room. The platforms are not mobile and cannot be transferred from one room to another after installation. Moreover, the instrument setup and positioning of conventional robotic surgical arms before the procedure require considerable effort, which subsequently increases the total operation time frame. The use of rigid instruments in these traditional surgical robotic platforms becomes extremely challenging in nonlinear pathways and makes it difficult to reach anatomical areas such as the brain in a minimally invasive fashion. This has spurred the development of agile and state-of-the-art next-generation surgical robotic technology platforms, which have been built with unique designs, advanced instrumentation, analytics and visualisation technologies that address the limitations of conventional surgical robotic systems.

Small footprint: Next-generation surgical robotic technology platforms have a smaller footprint that makes them easily accommodated in operating rooms without taking up much space. Moreover, these mobile platforms can be rapidly deployed in various operating rooms to facilitate higher utilisation.