Medical robotics: Would you trust a robot with a scalpel?

Driverless cars? Google has already wheeled one out. Robo-cops? Prototypes are on the scene. Love-bots? It might seem like a solution dreamed up by Aldous Huxley, but it’s already a reality. It might conjure up an image of Star Wars’ C-3PO in scrubs, but many of these medical machines are actually closer to the robots used to build your car. Not that a lack of automation is anything to be sniffy about; these machines still use powerful computers to carry out difficult jobs. Where the researchers are taking their cue from the seriously sexy technology of driverless cars is, for example, in the development of domestic robots for palliative care, be it helping you make a cup of tea or alerting the doctor if you skip your medication. For surgeons, who are often backing the development of these robots, the benefits of a machine like the da Vinci system are manifold. But it isn’t just about high precision. It isn’t just keyhole surgery that can benefit from cutting-edge tech.

robots2 Real Robots to Help Fight Ebola A few Fridays ago, we took a little bit of a dig at all of the media coverage of an “ebola-fighting robot” that turned out to be essentially just a UV light on a wheeled cart hooked up to a timer. It’s clever marketing, but not clever robotics. Even one of the fanciest UV disenfecting “robots” have instructions that begin, “after a hospital staff member cleans the room using traditional methods...” You’d think that real robots would have a lot to offer when it comes to assisting with the control of a highly infectious disease, just like you’d think that robots would have a lot to offer when it comes to assisting with the control of a highly radioactive nuclear power plant. To attempt to rectify this, the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue (CRASAR) at Texas A&M University is partnering with the White House Office of Science and Technology and other groups to hold a policy workshop on Safety Robotics for Ebola Workers. She also explains some of the challenges:

medical 1 robots Hansen Medical Announces Completion of First Robot-Assisted Uterine Fibroid Embolization Procedure in United States MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA, Oct 21, 2014 (Marketwired via COMTEX) -- Hansen Medical, Inc. HNSN, +7.60% a global leader in intravascular robotics, today announced the completion of the first robot-assisted Uterine Fibroid Embolization (UFE) in the United States. Sandeep Rao, MD, Interventional Radiologist, performed the procedure at Sierra Medical Center in El Paso, Texas using the Magellan Robotic System. "I am extremely pleased by the outcome of this initial procedure," said Dr. Uterine fibroids are non-cancerous tumors in or around the uterus, and are the most common benign tumors in women. Uterine Fibroid Embolization is a proven, non-surgical procedure in which a catheter is used to deliver tiny particles to block the blood vessels supplying blood to the fibroids. The Magellan Robotic System offers physicians robotic catheter control and stability during complex procedures in the peripheral blood vessels, and is used by physicians worldwide in a wide variety of catheter-based procedures.

medical 2 robots1 tiny robots 10 Medical Robots That Could Change Healthcare From microbots that scrape plaque from arteries to personal assistant robots that help care for patients, medical robots are transforming the face of healthcare. 1 of 11 Robots aren't new to healthcare. Remember the da Vinci Surgical System, the surgical assistant the FDA approved back in 2000? Since then, the system has conducted more than 20,000 surgeries and has paved the way for robotic advancements in healthcare. For example, Magnetic Microbots are a group of tiny robots used in various operations, such as removing plaque from a patient's arteries or helping with ocular conditions and disease screenings. "In the next few years, thousands of 'service robots' are expected to enter the healthcare sector -- picture R2-D2 from Star Wars carrying a tray of medications or a load of laundry down hospital corridors," according to a recent article from The Wall Street Journal. And that's no surprise considering the mounting financial difficulties the industry faces. More Insights

Scientists Consider Repurposing Robots for Ebola - NYTimes.com Photo Robotics scientists nationwide are pondering an intriguing possibility: Might robotic technologies deployed in rescue and disaster situations be quickly repurposed to help contain the Ebola epidemic? A robot that could perform even some of the tasks of a human, such as waste removal or the burial of bodies, would have significant lifesaving potential. So, with the assistance of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, scientists are planning a series of brainstorming meetings. The problem, scientists say, is that the technology is still limited when it comes to medicine. “You see the situation that the medical teams are facing, and I don’t even know if a robot is a solution,” said Taskin Padir, an assistant professor of robotics engineering at Worcester Polytechnic and an organizer of one of the meetings. Continue reading the main story Video Many of the countries experiencing the worst of the Ebola epidemic are in no position to deploy robots. OPEN Graphic

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