Laparoscopic Surgery

One example of how developments in technology changed health care is Laparoscopic surgery. Now surgeries can be performed “using small incisions and long pencil-like instruments to perform operations with a camera” (Laposcopic.md, 2015). This reduces the time it takes to perform the procedure, recovery time for the patient.

Although robotic assisted surgery has grown worldwide, and particularly in the United States where more than 67% of all da Vinci robots are installed, but as with any disruptive technology it faces some skepticism and challenges.

A laparoscope is a small tube (10 mm diameter) that contains a fiber optic cable that allows the surgeon to view the inside of the abdominal cavity on a video screen, high resolution and record the operation of a VCR. In a laparoscopic VBG, the surgeon makes three small incisions on the left side of the abdomen to insert the laparoscope, and a quarter an incision about 2.5 in (14 cm) in length on the right side. The formation of the gastric pouch and insertion of the plastic tape are performed through these small incisions. Since it is more difficult for the surgeon to maneuver the instruments through small openings, a LVBG requires more open VBG, about two to four

The Da Vinci Surgical System is a large purpose-built robot controlled by a surgeon that performs minimally invasive surgical procedures on patients. The system incorporates an ergonomically designed surgeon 's console, a patient-side module with four interactive robotic arms, each with interchangeable surgical instruments and a 3-dimensional endoscopic vision system. Powered by high-tech supercomputers, the surgeon 's hand movements are scaled, filtered and then converted into precise movements of the surgical attachments. The designers of the system are a team of doctors, engineers and biomedical engineers at a company called Intuitive Surgical.

With the ever-expanding medical field, I believe the next breakthrough will be advancements in robotic assisted surgeries. While it exists today, and helps in certain routine medical procedure, there is a huge potential in this field of biomedical engineering. The current procedures entail the use of a robotic mechanism that copies the movements of a doctor on a microscale that allows for less invasive surgery. With an almost tripling amount of procedures being performed since 2007, the potential of the surgical system is indeed beneficial. With the implementations of the current system on a larger scale, the medical field will expand exponentially. As the procedures become more common, the cost will decrease as competition in the market

Laparoscopic surgery was first performed in the early 1900s, but was not widely used until the 1980s (Spaner, & Warnock, 1997). Now, laparoscopic surgery has become quite common, with more than 2 million Americans undergoing a laparoscopic procedure each year, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (Fuller et al. … ). Laparoscopy is often preferred to open surgery due to a number of advantages that include reductions in post-op pain, incisions, and chance of hemorrhage. However, laparoscopic surgery skills require additional training over that which is needed to perform traditional open surgery. These include both technical skills such as suturing and knot tying with laparoscopic instruments, and the use of non-technical skills

The Mayo Clinic Staff describes the uses of robotic surgeries by saying, “perform many types of complex procedures with more precision, flexibility and control than is possible with conventional techniques” (“Robotic Surgery”). Gives Doctors more precise control over operations so they would make less mistakes. It also allows them to better help the patients and can cut down on time for tricky procedures. The staff shows the diversity of the machine with “clinical robotic surgical system includes a camera arm and mechanical arms with surgical instruments attached to them” (“Robotic Surgery”). The multiple surgical instruments lets the robotic arms perform many more useful procedures. The multitools also cut down on the amount of other equipment that hospitals need, therefore cutting cost. The Clinic also shows its usefulness to surgeons “The console gives the surgeon a high-definition, magnified, 3-D view of the surgical site” (“Robotic Surgery”). A major problem during surgery is visibility of what is going on inside the body. The high definition field helps the surgeon to see what is going on and allows them to act accordingly. Robotic surgery is the next step to being able to perform more complex procedures

Robotic surgery is a relatively new and continuously evolving, minimal invasive surgery that is the type of surgery that requires the use of a surgical robot, which may or may not involve the direct role of a surgeon during the proposed surgical procedure. It combines traditional surgical methods with that of the robotic technology that has been around since 1985. The science behind the use and or need for a surgical robots help, was born from the necessity of needing a more precise tool over the human hand to do repetitive motions. In fact the key advantage of robotic surgery is its accuracy and ability to repeat identical motions. Robotic surgery or a robot assisted surgery can have better dexterity from an ergonomic viewpoint over the human hand which can become fatigued. A robotic tool on the other hand, will always remain stable and not tire. The robot used is defined as a system that has a motorized construction tool

Laparoscopic surgery, also known as minimally invasive surgery, is used to perform surgeries of the abdomen. According to the World Laparoscopy Hospital, unlike traditional open surgery that requires a five to seven inch incision,

Advanced robotic systems give doctors greater control and vision during surgery, allowing them to perform safe, less invasive, and precise surgical procedures. One of the benefits of using such a precise system is smaller incisions, resulting in reduced risk of infection and faster recovery time (Intuitive Surgical 2015).

Originally there were two robotic systems, one was the Zeus System and the other was the Da Vinci System. The Da Vinci system quickly overtook the Zeus system, and the company that developed the Zeus system is now under control Intuitive Surgical Systems. (Fischer, 2012) The Da Vinci System has advanced since its birth, and is more prominent today. This robot has gone through many redesigns to keep up with the changing field of medicine. The Da Vinci robot is able to perform surgeries with the help of a surgeon guiding the robot. This makes surgery easier, efficient, and recovery time is decreased. The robot has revolutionized how surgeries now take place, because they are less intrusive and help patients have a faster recovery time; however, these robots are very expensive for hospitals and the cost to have a surgery using one of these robots differs from one hospital to another. These robots are the future of medicine, and soon the robot will be able to perform all types of surgeries with the help of a surgeon. Currently the Da Vinci System can be used to perform a laparoscopic cholecystectomy, prostatectomy, colectomy, hernia repair, pulmonary lobectomy, cardiac surgeries, gastric bypass, and hysterectomy. These are a significantly greater amount of procedures that can be performed, in comparison to laparoscopy.

In the United States, robot-assisted surgery currently is performed at more than 2000 hospitals. Growth in hospital ownership of robotic systems parallels the increase in the volume of robotic-assisted procedures, which is in excess of 25% annually [1,3]. This growth has been driven by multiple factors: surgeons’ preference, patient attraction to new technology, industry pressures, and marketing efforts of hospitals and surgeons. Doctors and hospitals often promote and advertise robotic surgery, even though their claims of better outcomes and safety [4,5] remain largely unsubstantiated.

Weak. Diagnosed with cancer. Not physically well enough to have a normal procedure, Debra Johnson was left with no other option than to put her life in the hands of a first time robotic surgeon. Back in 2006, she was turned away from the conventional method of surgery because she was deemed not physically fit enough by doctors to go through the operation. So she then turned to a surgeon by the name of Gary Leiserowitz. It was going to be his first time performing this kind of operation on anyone. However, he explained the operation very clearly and had great confidence going in, which left Ms. Johnson feeling good going into the surgery. This life saving procedure would not have been possible without robotic surgery ("Robotic-assisted Surgery…”). The technology was a last resort for this woman and allowed for her to have a chance at a longer life. The results from this operation urge the question as to why this type of surgery is not the first choice when it comes to operations much like this one. Is it because people are against the idea of being operated upon by a robot? If this is the case, then why is this? The “robot” is simply just a new, different form of technology invented by humans. The process of robotic surgery is a great advancement in medical technology that should be used more often in the surgical world due to its precision and minimally invasive techniques.

During this time, is when the physician is able to enter data that is in 3D form into a computer, that will in return, program the computer for the purpose of assisting with removing certain areas of the bone. The controlled instrument has multiply joined arms, and they assist in controlling the 8mm instruments. The arms are also useful with helping to direct the binocular video endoscope towards the intended area (Hockstein, Gourin, Faust & Terris, 2007). The Robodoc is one of the computer-guided mills that have been used with patients in other countries, but has not been officially FDA approved in certain states of our country, due to the growing concerns of high complications. There are other devices such as the Acrobot that’s similar to the Robodoc and was designed to help with knee replacements, and temporal bone surgery (Hockstein, Gourin, Faust & Terris, 2007). Although the devices were designed, they haven’t been clinically tested, nor have they been FDA approved.

Laparoscopic surgery requires several incision of around 0.5 to 1.5cm that will be carry out at the abdomen. The laparoscope which has a camera and light source on it will also be used and the image in the abdomen will be showed on a television monitor which allows the surgeon to carry out the surgery more efficiently. A trocar as seen from the image above will be