What Are the Types of Robotic Surgery?
By Mike Selvon
Medical robotics is the future of science. Though one Da Vinci surgical robot costs roughly $1.7 million, surgeons who have used it say it is both remarkable and revolutionary. “I do a lot of gallbladder surgery,” explains Dr. Glen Gibson of Annapolis General Hospital. “Operating on livers, stomachs and colons used to be stem-to-stern incisions; I have had to take out (only) one gallbladder by traditional surgery in the last three years.” Robotic surgery promises quicker recovery times, less pain medication and fewer incisions, he adds.
Currently there are three types of robotic surgery systems: Supervisory-Controlled systems, Telesurgical systems and Shared-Control systems. Supervisory-Controlled systems (a.k.a. Computer Assisted Surgery) are the most automated of the three. The surgeon undertakes considerable prep work, inputs data into the robotic system, plans the course of action, takes x-rays, tests the robot’s motions, places the robot in the appropriate start position and oversees the robotic action to ensure everything goes as planned. The most famous prototype is the RoboDoc system developed by Integrated Surgical Systems, which is commonly used in orthopedic surgeries.
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