2022 Volume 35 Issue 3 Pages 74-81
Presently, robotic surgeries are increasing rapidly in the fields of urologic and general surgery. Surgical robots can reduce surgeon’s finger tremors and facilitate precise maneuvers, which are advantageous in microsurgery. In Europe, two types of surgical robotic systems were created for microsurgery, and they have begun to be used in clinical practice.
We have been working on the development of a new surgical robot specialized for microsurgery since 2017. Our goal was to make robotic hands with following accuracy of less than±0.01 mm and use a 3D monitor with 8K resolution in place of the surgeon’s eyes. In 2021, we succeeded in anasto-mosing an artificial vessel of less than 1 mm in diameter using our test model. We are aiming to complete the final product, which will be used to suture lymphatic vessels of less than 1 mm, by 2024.
The exoscope has begun to be introduced in the field of microsurgery as another option to the surgical microscope. By using the exoscope, surgeons can perform microsurgery with a wide working space and relaxed posture, which reduce the physical burden on microsurgeons.
The latest information and the pros and cons of these new devices are reviewed in this article.
