New Delhi:
Remember Chitti, the loveable robot in Rajikant's mega-hit film Robot, who could do just about anything under the sun? Well, now you can turn to robots to take care of your medical problems. Don't get shocked if you find a robot standing next to you while you go in for a surgery at the Operation Theatre (OT). Instead of doctors, robots will perform operations in hospitals.
The first robotic surgery in India was conducted at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in the year 2008. But with mproved technology, all the departments of the institute have adopted robotic surgery.
"In this kind of surgery, there is no need to dissect the entire chest as they do in open chest surgeries nor is there a need to break the rib bones or the sternum bone for conducting the operation. In this robotic operation, only three incursions of one centimetre each need to be done in the left chest, which prevents heavy bleeding and reduces the rehabilitation period by seven times," said Dr Arvind Kumar, professor of surgery at AIIMS.
According to doctors, patients are still a little apprehensive about this procedure. "I was nervous at first. When the doctor told me about the surgery, I was honestly scared. But then they assured me there is no risk in this surgery, so I agreed for it," said Ramasheesh Prasad, an engineering student who underwent robotic surgery.
So how does it work? One arm of the robot controls the camera and the other three hands manipulate the surgical instruments. The entire process is observed via a high-definition 3D vision system. The system is known as the Da Vinci surgical robotic system and is manufactured by California-based Intuitive Surgical.
The robotic arm is designed in such a way that it can reach the interiors of the organ curvature, which is not possible in traditional or microscopic surgery without damaging normal tissues. "Robotic surgery is the future of surgery," said Dr. Arvind.