Design and development of a robotic surgery device and a medical simulator
Creators: name: D'Auria, Daniela
Publisher: name: Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Year: 2013

description: The research theme of this investigation is driven by a strong clinical need for new and improved technology to help the modern surgeon. Since the beginning of the 21st century, the emergence of innovative technologies made further advances in minimal access surgery possible.
Surgical techniques have evolved rapidly, for example the introduction of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) and robotically-assisted MIS which have improved outcomes for patients with faster recovery, reduced post-operative pain and fewer scars. For such a reason, there is an increasing need to develop innovative en- gineering solutions to some of the challenges being faced as surgery evolves to help surgeons to achieve the best possible clinical outcome and also to develop solutions helping to reduce costs and improve quality. As a matter of fact, robotic surgery and medical simulator addressed the limitations of medical procedures, thus revolutionizing minimal access surgery.
First of all, with the introduction of robotics in the operating room, an evolutionary stage in the development of surgical technique was achieved to enhance the control and the visual field of the surgeon. It can be stated that this new approach was patient oriented as it brings several critical advantages for him: damage to healthy tissue is minimal; patients hospitalization is reduced to an average of 1.2 days; psychological impact of the procedure upon the patient is significantly lower; the risk of an unwanted infection is almost zero; using robotic systems the precision of the intervention is below one hundred of a millimetre; the risk of unwanted cuts (vessel sectioning, nerve damage, etc.) is minimal; the number of assistants in the operation room is reduced; 3D visual feedback.
Second, training with a surgical simulator offers several advantages. It is similar to a wet laboratory, human cost in the form of adverse outcomes for patients is minimized, and residents can practice in a relaxed learning environment at their own pace. Additionally, training on surgical simulators can be incorporated into a curriculum that is available to residents at any time.
Furthermore, the development of physical and cognitive surgical simulators offers an approach for learning which is different from the traditional apprenticeship model. Simulators cannot replace experienced surgical preceptors, but they are fast becoming an attractive and acceptable adjunct in surgical curricula. As the technology improves, the simulations will become more realistic, and the experience will become more valuable. Simulation programs will play a greater role in future surgical education.
For what concerns improving patient care and providing technology for healthcare professionals, there are many limitations and obstacles to overcome, before robotic surgery systems and medical simulators being able to be integrated into the medical field.
Motivated by the above observations, the goal of this research is to develop a new manipulator in order to improve such electromecanical limitation of the current surgery robotic systems and also to build a new surgery simulator to address some obstacles when doing some open surgery performances.