Friday, October 28, 2005
Tiny robots could perform remote surgery
Medical responders of the future may be 3 inches tall or less.
But, these tiny-wheeled robots - slipped into the abdomen and controlled by surgeons hundreds of kilometers away - may be giants in saving the lives of roadside accident victims and soldiers injured on the battlefield.
Each camera-carrying robot - the width of a lipstick case - would illuminate the patient's abdomen, beam back video images and carry different tools to help surgeons stop internal bleeding by clamping, clotting or cauterizing wounds.
But, these tiny-wheeled robots - slipped into the abdomen and controlled by surgeons hundreds of kilometers away - may be giants in saving the lives of roadside accident victims and soldiers injured on the battlefield.
Each camera-carrying robot - the width of a lipstick case - would illuminate the patient's abdomen, beam back video images and carry different tools to help surgeons stop internal bleeding by clamping, clotting or cauterizing wounds.
