Humans are still better surgeons than robots. It is true that they make as many mistakes in the operating room as machines, but they operate faster, according to the latest research.
Since the first operating surgical robots appeared in British hospitals 10 years ago, the number of procedures performed by them has been growing. Machines not only remove the kidneys, bladder and prostate, but also various types of tumors.
Scientists predicted that robots would be more accurate, dexterous and faster than humans over time, while the latest research shows that machine-made surgery does not increase patients’ chances, but takes longer.
Researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine in the United States analyzed nearly 25 operations performed in 416 American hospitals between 2006 and 2012.
It turned out that in the case of laparoscopy only 28 percent. patients stayed in the operating room for more than four hours when the procedure was performed by a human, but as many as 46 percent stayed under the knife for so long. robotic patients. Moreover, the robotic procedure cost an average of $ 2700 more.
“We found that while there is no statistical difference in outcomes or length of hospital stay, robotic surgeries cost more and in many cases take longer than surgeons alone,” said Dr. Benjamin Chung, professor of urology at Stanford University.
British hospitals are equipped with about 60 da Vinci surgical robots, which facilitate the performance of complex surgical procedures with the minimally invasive method. The machine has three to four arms, and the surgeon controlling it can be at any distance from the patient – the body image is obtained through a special viewfinder displaying in 3D. The cost of purchasing the device is about a million dollars, and there are also considerable operating costs.
Researchers emphasize that surgical robots are useful, especially for complex procedures requiring high precision.
However, the study showed that in the case of simpler surgical procedures, such as removal of the entire kidney, surgeons operating without the use of a robot are better suited.
According to the authors of the study, it is possible that in the future the time of performing procedures by surgical robots will shorten, and the difference in costs will not be as large as it is now, but so far statistics show that the use of robotics in hospitals, especially in surgical departments, is not always possible. best solution.
“Such expensive equipment should be used, but it’s important that the healthcare system is aware of how we spend our money on healthcare,” says Dr. Chung.
– Surgical robots have many advantages, but it should always be considered whether these advantages are significant enough to justify the higher cost.
The study was published in the Journal of The American Medical Association (JAMA).