Comparative study of remote surgery techniques

Abstract

Remote surgery is the method by which a doctor can perform surgery on a patient from a remote location. The main reason for developing this kind of technique is to treat emergency patients from a long distance. This paper surveys the research work performed regarding the topic. Detailed case studies of work regarding this topic across the world have also been compiled. Apart from this, the various factors of improvements needed to make commercial remote surgery successful have been discussed in detail. This paper focuses first on the various operational concepts behind remote or robotic surgery. In this paper, a detail study of the structure and design of the robotic hand has been provided. However, this technology is still in its nascent stage and needs considerable improvement to be made commercial. Attention has been drawn to research about bio compatible materials which will not react with the body and cause harm. The final aspect of robot surgery that has been discussed in this paper is the wireless communication between the remote stations. Attention has been drawn to the points of improvement in the communications infrastructure. It was concluded in the paper that although the idea of remote surgery has been conceived long ago, not much work has been done on improving the precision of the robotic system, bio compatibility of the robotic arm and the communications infrastructure of the system to make it commercially feasible.