Chinese doctors perform coronary angiography with the help of a robot

Experts from the Fuwai Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences recently performed coronary angiography entirely with the help of a robot.

The operation, which was carried out at the Shenzhen branch of Fuwai Hospital, used a surgical robot that can perform both imaging and interventional treatment, Xinhua reports.

Not counting the preparation, the operation was successfully completed in only about 10 minutes. The patient was satisfied with the procedure and the results.

For traditional vascular surgical intervention, there are problems such as the lack of professional doctors and the high risk of radiation. With the help of surgical robots, doctors can protect themselves from radiation, and the accuracy of the operation is higher, which greatly reduces the likelihood of postoperative complications.

During traditional vascular interventions, doctors wear protective clothing weighing up to 20 kilograms, which is physically demanding, said Dou Kefei of Fuvai Hospital.

Meanwhile, surgery is performed with X-rays, but current shielding measures can only effectively protect about 50 percent of the radiation, Dou added.

The robot not only helps doctors avoid radiation, but also makes the operation more stable because the doctor works in a sitting position and the screen is easier to see.

In addition, the robotic arm has greater precision and is easier to roll, which significantly reduces the likelihood of postoperative complications.

Robotic-assisted vascular interventions are setting the stage for remote surgeries and enabling a wider range of scenarios, Dou said.

According to the report, there are about 330 million people with cardiovascular disease in China, and the prevalence rate and number of patients are increasing.

More than 1.800 hospitals in China performed vascular interventional surgeries, and the number of coronary interventional surgeries reached 5,04 million in 2019, of which about 4 million were angiograms.

The success of robot-assisted coronary angiography will help promote the clinical application of surgical robots in coronary interventional surgery, Dou said.

The vascular interventional robot is expected to become the main tool of the new generation of interventional surgery in the future, benefiting more patients, Dou added.