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 In experiments on pigs, surgical stitches made by autonomous robots
were as good as, or better than, stitches made by skilled surgeons.
The same may be true in humans, according to the study's senior
author.
"The main message is that by giving surgeons tools that are
intelligent, whether autonomous or semi-autonomous, you can make
outcomes better," said Dr. Peter Kim, of the Sheikh Zayed Institute
for Pediatric Surgical Innovation at Children’s National Health
System in Washington, D.C.
Robotic surgery has become increasingly common in the U.S., but
currently available robots still need to be operated by surgeons'
hands. Autonomous robots would be more consistent than humans, Kim
told Reuters Health.
"No matter how steady a surgeons hands are, there is always some
tremor," he said.
Using autonomous robots in some of the 44.5 million soft-tissue
surgeries in the U.S. each year might reduce human errors and
improve efficiency, surgical time and access to quality surgeons,
the researchers write in Science Translational Medicine.
To see if robots could successfully complete surgical tasks on their
own, the researchers created the Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot
(STAR), which consists of a robotic arm, suturing tool and imaging
technologies.
The robot uses a computer program informed by best surgical
practices to determine where and how to place a stitch.
First, the researchers tested STAR's ability to stitch together two
pieces of tissue harvested from pigs. The autonomous robot generally
outperformed human surgeons and currently-available robots.
Then the investigators compared the skills of STAR and human
surgeons for reconnecting an interrupted intestine in live pigs. The
outcomes of the operations by STAR were consistent with the outcomes
of a skilled surgeon.
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Autonomous robotic surgery still a long way to go before it's ready
for prime time, however.
Dr. Keith Lillemoe, chief of surgery at Massachusetts General
Hospital in Boston, said the technology needs to be tested in a
variety of models.
"It’s something that’s clearly exciting, but we need to see more
evidence," said Lillemoe, who was not involved in the new study.
Even if evidence shows technology to be just as good as traditional
surgery, people will need to factor in the cost of autonomous
surgery, he said.
Lillemoe is not worried about being replaced by a robot, because so
many surgical decisions can't be computerized, he said.
"Surgery is no different than any other field," Lillemoe said.
"Technology can always make us better."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1T9AxQ1 Science Translational Medicine, May 4,
2016.
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