Surgical robots take on autonomous tasks

Researchers are developing robots that can go beyond assisting in surgery and actually perform procedures autonomously, according to new research published at Science Translational Medicine.

Scientists from John's Hopkins University and Children's National Health System in the District of Columbia for the research recently demonstrated what they're calling the world's first autonomous robotic soft-tissue surgery. 

Their surgical bot, called STAR (Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot), performed several supervised but unguided procedures called intestinal anastomosis, in which part of the bowel is removed and the remaining segments are sutured together, according to the study. The operations were performed on live, anesthetized pigs.

The researchers not only deemed those procedures successful, but found STAR performed better than human surgeons.

While tissue movement is a factor in soft-tissue surgery, limited robotic automation is already being used in surgeries involving rigid structures such as bones, according to an announcement on STAR.

For a separate clinic trial, conducted by researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, success was seen in using robotic technology to remotely control coronary guidewires and stents in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on patients with complex coronary lesions, according to an announcement. Results of that trial were presented at the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions 2016 Scientific Sessions in Orlando.

Technical success with the robot during PCI reached 91.7 percent with a single operator, and more than 90 percent of cases did so with minimal manual assistance. Success rates were similar, but robots at a little over 44 minutes took longer than humans at a little over 36 minutes.

To learn more:
- check out the STAR research
- read the announcement
- here's the PCI piece