Permission was given by Dr. Thrasher to use this image from a DVD on this website during our interview.

Close your eyes and imagine a situation where you are in need of a surgical procedure. Only one doctor in the world can perform the surgery. Imagine you only have a limited amount of time to receive this life saving surgery. The only problem is that the only doctor is 700 miles away and can not come to where you are on time and you are in too bad of shape travel. The only thing that can save you is telesurgery, long robotic surgery. Would you allow a robot being controlled by someone hundreds of miles away to perform surgery on you?

Robotic Surgery  

Robotic surgery is a type of surgery where the surgeon is controlling a robot assistant from a few feet away sitting at the control consol. The robots operate in minimally invasive surgeries where thin robotic arms are inserted through the abdomen. The robots usually have three arms one has an endoscopic camera which provides a magnified view of the patients internal organs. The other two arms hold surgical instruments that can be exchanged by an assistant standing beside the patient. The surgeon controls the robot through joystick-like controls, foot pedals and through ring controls. The ring controls are two rings for each hand that are attached to the control console, the surgeon inserts his or her finger into the rings and moves his fingers and hands to control the robot arms holding the instruments (Meadows).  

Robotic surgery was originally developed for use in battlefields, where it would be too dangerous for a live person to enter. Robotic surgery can be performed from a few feet away, but its specialty is long distance robotic surgery (McGoven).   Robotic surgical systems were created to assist human surgeons during surgery. The robots are not autonomous; they cannot make any movements with out the surgeons control. Autonomous robots have not yet been created for surgery, but it is a possibility for the future. The robots provide extreme precision and control not possible with only human hands (Bonsor).

  Benefits of Robotic Surgery   With laparoscopic and endoscopic, two types of minimally invasive surgery, robotic surgery the incisions to the human body are smaller and cause less trauma and pain for the patients. The smaller incisions also mean less scaring and faster healing. Also robots do not have tremor or shaking and with the robotic wrists the surgeon has an increased range for him or her to work in complicated angles not possible in normal surgeries. The surgeon also gets a magnified view with the endoscopic camera attached to one of the robotic arms. A tiny vein only a millimeter thick can appear a centimeter thick. Robotic surgical systems also allow the surgeons movements to be minimized. If the surgeon needs to make an incision only micrometers long, the surgeon can make the incision by zooming into the surgical area and cutting only in the magnified area (Meadows).

  Laparoscopic robotic surgery is especially useful for use on babies. A baby’s abdomen is very small, the robotic arms also have to be thin so that do not harm the child’s organs. For this type of surgery the ZEUS has 5 millimeter thick robotic arms (Meadows).

Telesurgery           

Telesurgery, also known as long distance robotic surgery, allows a surgeon to perform surgeries on a patient on the other side of the world. This is especially useful for use in countries that do not have access to experienced surgeons. The only equipment the country needs is a robotic surgical system like the da Vinci or the ZEUS. During telesurgery a licensed surgeon controls a robotic system that is placed next to the patient. The commands given by the surgeon take only milliseconds to get from the surgeon to the robot. Beside the patient’s bed there is always assistant surgeons changing the tools the robot holds and making sure the robot is functioning properly (Meadows).  

Long distance robotic surgery can happen just about anywhere. Scientists and doctors are working together to make it possible for robots to perform surgeries in space. The only complication is that on earth the commands take one second to go from one side to the other. In space the commands would take much longer than what doctors would like them too (Robots). ………………………………………………………………………………………….

Sierra los ojos y imajina que necesitas una sirujia urgente. Nomas hay un doctor que la puada aser. Nomas tienes un poco de tiempo para recivir la sirujia. El unico problees quell el doctor esta a 700 millas de ti y no puede venir. Lo unico que te puede salvar la vida es telesirujia, sirujia robotica de large distancia. Dejarias que te la isieran?

La sirujia robotica es un tipo de sirujia en donde el sirujano contrala un robot que hace la sirujia. Los robots acen sirujia con unos tubos muy delgados que son insertados en tu abdomen. Los robots normalmente tienen tres manos y una de ellas tiene ena camara endoscopica par aver los organos mas grandes. Las otras dos manos detienen las herramientas sirurjicas que pueden ser intercamviadas. El sirujano controla al robot con controles de mano, pedales, y controles de anillo. Los controles de anillo son dos anillos en cada mano que controlan las manos roboticas  

La sirujia robotica fue inventada para el uso en campo de guerra para no usar personas. La sirujia robotica puede ser usado a unos pies de distancia pero su especialidad es sirujia de larga distancia.  

Los robots fueron creados para asistir a los sirujanos en sirujias. Los robots no son autonomos; no pueden moverse solos sin el control del sirujano. Robots autonomos no an sido inventados para sirujias todavia. Los robots dan precision extrema que no es posible con manos humanas.  

Con sirujia laproscopica y endoscopica, dos typos de sirujia de invasion minima, las cortadas al ser humano son mas pequeñas, causen menos trauma, y menos dolor al paciente. Entre mas pequeña la cortada menos es la prdida de sangre y la sicatris. Los robots no tiemblan y tienen manos que dan mas movimiento al sirujano. Y es mas facil trabajar en angulos complicados. El sirujano tambien ve todo mas grande y major. Una vena de un millimitro de gruesor se ve como un centimetro de gruesor. Y si el sirujano ase movimientos grandes el robot los ace pequeños.

  Sirujia laproscopica es util en bebes porque tienen un abdomen pequeño.  Los brazos del robot son muy delgados y no causan daño al beebe. Para este typo de sirujia el ZEUS tiene brazos de 5 millimitros de gruesor.

Telesirujia tambien es conosida coma sirujia obotica de larga distansea. Esto ase posible aser sirujias en otros paices. Esto es tuil en paices que no tienen sirujanos experimentados. Lo unico que necesita ese pais es un systema robotico como el ZEUS o el da Vinci. Durante telesirujia el sirujano controla el robot que esta al lado del paciente. Las instrucsiones del sirujano duran millisegundos para llegar al robot. A lado del paciente tambien esta un asistente par aver que todo valla vien.

Sirujia de larga distansea puede suceder en cualquier lugar. Doctores y sirujanos trabajan juntos para aser la posible en el espacio. En la tierra dura un Segundo para que la señal valla de un lado del mundo al otro en el espacio duraria muho mas delo deseado.  

Permission was given by Dr. Thrasher to use this image from a DVD on this website during our interview.

McGoven, Kevin.  “Applications of virtual reality to surgery: still in the prototype stage.”  British Medical Journal 308.n6936 (April 23, 1994):  1054(2). General OneFile.  Garden City Community College. 7 Feb. 2008.  http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS.  

Meadows, Michelle. "Robots Lend a Helping Hand to Surgeons." 24 Apr. 2002. FDA. 21 Feb. 2008 <http://www.fda.gov/Fdac/features/2002/302_bots.html>.  

Bonsor, Kevin. "How Robotic Surgery Will Work." How Stuff Works. 26 Feb. 2008 <http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/robotic-surgery1.htm>.       

"Robots Give Edge to Long-Distance Surgery." American Telemedicine Association. 6 November 2000. 1 August 2007. http://www.temple.edu/ispr/examples/ex00_12_28.html.