World’s first operation performed by robot surgeons has been carried out

Two teleoperated robots work as a team to perform a laparoscopic gallbladder removal during a pre-clinical trial (Picture: University of California San Diego (UCSD)/Cover Images)

It’s like the plot of a science fiction film.

The world’s first operation performed by robot surgeons has been successfully carried out.

Researchers say the breakthrough could one day allow specialists to carry out life-saving procedures from hundreds of miles away,helping patients in remote communities,disaster zones and military field hospitals.

The human-shaped robots completed two gallbladder removal operations during a preclinical trial on large animal models.

One procedure saw a robot operate alongside a human surgeon acting as an assistant. In the second,two humanoid robots worked together as the surgical team.

The research,published in the journal Nature,was carried out by engineers and surgeons at the University of California San Diego.

Nicknamed ‘Surgie’,the robots stand around 5ft tall,weigh just 27kg and use standard surgical instruments,meaning they could work in existing operating theatres without the specialist facilities needed for conventional robotic surgery systems.

A human-robot team made up of a humanoid robot and a human surgeon acting as an assistant successfully performed a gallbladder removal (Picture: University of California San Diego (UCSD)/Cover Images)

Professor Michael Yip,one of the study’s senior authors,said the technology could help tackle a growing global shortage of surgeons.

He said: ‘There is a shortage of surgeons alongside growing patient needs,which leads to longer wait times,reduced access and greater healthcare disparities.

‘Remotely operated and autonomous humanoid robots have real potential for expanding access to critical surgeries that patients would otherwise not receive.’

Conventional robotic surgery systems can weigh almost 1,800lb and require specialist operating theatres and large support teams.

The researchers say humanoid robots are far cheaper,more compact and could be deployed in under-resourced hospitals or temporary medical facilities.

Dr Shanglei Liu,who remotely controlled one of the robots during the trial,said: ‘It’s a fraction of the cost and it takes a fraction of the space in an operating room. So it’s easy to deploy anywhere from rural areas to the battlefield,and even to space.’

Ryan Broderick,MD,controls a robot during a gallbladder removal procedure (Picture: University of California San Diego (UCSD)/Cover Images)

The robots mirror a surgeon’s hand movements using a teleoperation system,allowing procedures to be performed remotely.

The team says the technology is still in its early stages. The robots needed several recalibrations during surgery and the operations took much longer than those carried out using existing robotic systems.

But the researchers believe the technology will improve rapidly,pointing out that early robotic keyhole surgery once took six hours but can now be completed in around 30 minutes.

They hope humanoid robots will eventually work alongside surgeons,helping deliver specialist care to patients wherever it is needed.