Applications of robotics for laryngeal surgery

Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2008 Aug;41(4):781-91, vii. doi: 10.1016/j.otc.2008.01.021.

Abstract

The authors present the clinical application of robotics to laryngeal surgery in terms of enhancement of surgical precision and performance of other minimally invasive procedures not feasible with current instrumentation. Presented in this article are comparisons of human arm with robotic arm in terms of degrees of freedom and discussion of surgeries and outcomes with use of the robotic arm. Robotic equipment for laryngeal surgery has the potential to overcome many of the limitations of endolaryngeal procedures by improving optics, increasing instrument degrees of freedom, and modulating tremor. Outside of laryngology, a multi-armed robotic system would have utility in microvascular surgery, procedures at the base of the skull, sinus surgery, and single-port gastrointestinal and thoracic access surgery.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Equipment Design
  • Humans
  • Laryngeal Neoplasms / pathology
  • Laryngeal Neoplasms / surgery*
  • Laryngectomy / instrumentation*
  • Laryngoscopes*
  • Microsurgery / instrumentation
  • Robotics / instrumentation*
  • Surgery, Computer-Assisted / instrumentation*
  • Suture Techniques / instrumentation
  • User-Computer Interface