Getting a grip on surgery robots at OMSI
Are robots replacing surgeons? Not any time soon, but that was one of the most frequently asked questions when Oregon Health & Science University physicians gave demonstrations this weekend of how surgical robots work and how they are transforming a wide variety of procedures. The demonstrations
OHSU Knight Cancer Institute surgeons Christopher Amling, M.D., and Elizabeth Munro, M.D., answer questions about surgical robots during demonstrations of the technology at OMSI.
were part of Gunther von Hagens’ BODY WORLDS & The Brain exhibit at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI). Museum visitors had the opportunity to see how the robotic equipment works and test their own surgical skills.
“It was exciting to see the direction medical technology is headed,” said Eric Flamm of Portland, who was visiting OMSI with his two children. “It provided a concrete example of what surgeons do and the skills they have.”
Among the physicians providing demonstrations and answering questions was Christopher Amling, M.D., division chief of urology at OHSU and a surgeon with the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute. Amling said that many visitors to the OMSI exhibit were curious about how using a robot benefits the patient. In short, the robot can easily go where a surgeon’s hand can’t, which spares patients from large incisions. The equipment does this by translating the movements of the surgeon’s hands, which are on the controls, into the robot which is performing the surgery.
The experience of working with a surgery robot is somewhat like playing a computer game. Cameras embedded in the equipment give the surgeon the ability to see inside the body and guide the robot. With these tools, surgeons are able to more easily access areas of the body such as the prostate, throat and sinuses. These high-tech procedures are also less invasive than traditional, open surgery. As a result, there is less blood loss and hospital stays are shorter.
“In urology we pioneered the use of the robots,” Amling said. Now many other disciplines use surgery robots including gynecologists, cardiologists and ear, nose and throat specialists, he added.
Elizabeth Munro, M.D., of the OHSU Knight Cancer Institute, uses a surgical robot in her work as a gynecologic oncologist. The robot allows for less invasive surgery to treat early stage uterine and cervical cancers.
Munro’s father, Richard Munro, attended the OMSI demonstration and tried his hand with the equipment. “Now I have a little bit more of an understanding of what she does and her work environment,” he said. “It’s exciting to see it.”
OHSU physicians gave demonstrations of the robots throughout the weekend. An Oregonian reporter wrote a story about the exhibit after visiting OMSI on Saturday. For those who could not make it to OMSI, here’s what the demonstrations look like:
