Canada NewsWire reported yesterday that the world’s first telerobotics assisted surgery has been performed. Dr. Anvari, a specialist in minimal access surgery, successfully collaborated with Dr. McKinley, a General Surgeon, to perform acid reflux surgery on a female patient at North Bay General Hospital from 400 kilometres away at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton, with the aid of Computer Motion’s ZEUS Surgical System. The ZEUS robot was connected by Bell Canada’s Virtual Private Network (VPN) Service to the system’s robotic arms in North Bay General Hospital’s operating room. Dr. Anvari’s hand, wrist, and finger movements were translated from the ZEUS console, with a delay of no longer than 150 milliseconds, to control the endoscopic camera and the surgical instruments in the abdomen of the patient. At the patient’s side, Dr. McKinley positioned the robotically controlled instruments and controlled the electrocautery energy source.
“We now can successfully use a robot from a distance, to actually assist and perform part of the surgery if necessary. The implications of this are far reaching,” said Dr. Anvari.
“With the challenge of attracting specialized surgeons to Canada’s northern communities, this technology allows us to provide necessary services close to home and family,” said Dr. McKinley. “Telerobotics procedures are the next logical step in minimal access surgery to help ensure that communities have access to needed expertise.”
This surgery was the first in a series of collaborations between Dr. McKinley and Dr. Anvari scheduled to demonstrate the safety and feasibility of telerobotics assisted surgery to extend the reach of expert health care to Canada’s remote populations. “Based on the success of these first cases, we are investigating the next steps to take this technology to other Canadian communities including Yellowknife and Chicoutimi,” said Dr. Anvari. “Ultimately we hope to make it accessible to dozens of remote locations to create linkages that will provide both expert advice to our northern colleagues as well as expert assistance during surgery when required.”