Fields of application
ACTIVE INSTRUMENTS systems are used for all interventions where it is advantageous to support the manual activity of the surgeon: When working at the limits of human fine motor skills, for example in micro-, neurosurgery or ophthalmic surgery, in stereotypical and time-consuming activities such as closing larger wounds, in regions with difficult instrumental and visual access, when geometrically exact interventions planned with imaging procedures are to be performed or when the processed structure moves, as in beating heart surgery.
Micro-, Neuro-, Ophthalmosurgery
In the microsurgical application environment, at the limit of human fine motor skills, manual skills of the surgeon determine duration and outcome of surgery.
The use of tremor-compensating hand-held instruments not only accelerates the intervention, but also offers the possibility of obtaining a better clinical result in the same time, for example by anastomosing a larger number of nerves or ( lymphatic ) vessels.
This instruments also opens up new therapeutic possibilities. These include, for example, treating central vein thrombosis in the eye by direct puncture of the retinal central vein with an autonomously positioning injector.
Orthopaedic Surgery
In macroscopic procedures, for example in orthopaedic endoprosthetics, it may be useful to plan the intervention initially on the basis of individual three-dimensional data generated by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computer tomography (CT).
The geometrically exact implementation is achieved by actively moving working tips of a hand-guided instrument that is oriented to anatomical or suitably positioned landmarks.
This guarantees precise positioning of instruments such as drills, milling machines or saws relative to the body part to be treated.
The surgeon has full control and can switch to manual work at any time. The fact that the surgical access to the surgical area does not have to be larger and that the devices have a mechanically limited radius of action also precludes avoidable traumatization.
Cardiac Surgery
Hand-held robotics will also be a key to moving heart surgery. Synchronizing the working tip with the beat of the heart creates a “virtual standstill”.
The use of a heart-lung machine becomes unnecessary in many cases, the procedure is more gentle and rehabilitation is faster.
Here, too, the surgeon retains full control and there is no need for a stationary robotic system.