The next evolution in colorectal surgery

12/06/23 • 38 min

Robotic-assisted surgery can often feel like a technology straight from the world of sci-fi. Units with multiple articulating arms, sometimes operated by surgeons in separate rooms, can make these systems feel completely alien to traditional open surgery methods. And this image can present a hurdle to patients (and even some surgeons) for fear that the technology is too new and not tried and tested enough.

But as any seasoned robotic surgeon will tell you, robotics is just the next evolutionary step in surgery. From open surgery, to laparoscopic, to robotics, the ways in which operations are carried out are always changing, adopting new technologies and ever-better techniques.

In our season finale of Surgical Robo-Talks, we’ll be finding out how this surgical discipline has developed and how it’s making its mark on the surgical world with help from consultant colorectal surgeon and president-elect of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland, Jared Torkington. Our co-host today is consultant colorectal surgeon at University Hospital Limerick and past vice president of the Association of Surgeons in Training, Christina Fleming.

They’ll discuss how advances in laparoscopic surgery paved the way for robotic-assisted surgery and explore how the two were both received by the medical community when they first emerged. Plus, we’ll learn how robotic-assisted surgery could be incorporated into colorectal surgical training and ask what advances we might see in robotics in the coming years.

We’ll also ask:

(3:24) - How did laparoscopic surgery go from experimental practice to mainstream method?
(5:56) – What caused the change in approach to laparoscopic surgery in the 1990s?
(8:29) – Where does Jared feel the benefits lie in robotic-assisted colorectal surgery?
(11:18) – How do you explain to patients that robotic-assisted surgery is just a progression from laparoscopic surgery and open surgery?
(13:43) - Where was Jared when robotic-assisted surgery first appeared in soft-tissue surgery? And what was the general feeling towards it?
(16:03) - Are more randomized trials needed to verify the success rates and benefits of robotics?
(18:51) - Should registries be a standard part of robotic-assisted surgery?
(20:52) – What do surgeons think about participating in registries?
(24:09) – How should robotics be incorporated into robotic-assisted surgical training?
(26:26) – Should surgical trainees be trained given the plethora of robotics platforms available?
(29:36) - How could robotic-assisted surgical training be introduced in parallel to the current training systems?
(35:06) - How could robotic-assisted surgery and its adoption evolve over the next five years?

We’ll also ask:

(3:24) - How did laparoscopic surgery go from experimental practice to mainstream method?
(5:56) – What caused the change in approach to laparoscopic surgery in the 1990s?
(8:29) – Where does Jared feel the benefits lie in robotic-assisted colorectal surgery?
(11:18) – How do you explain to patients that robotic-assisted surgery is just a progression from laparoscopic surgery and open surgery?
(13:43) - Where was Jared when robotic-assisted surgery first appeared in soft-tissue surgery? And what was the general feeling towards it?
(16:03) - Are more randomized trials needed to verify the success rates and benefits of robotics?
(18:51) - Should registries be a standard part of robotic-assisted surgery?
(20:52) – What do surgeons think about participating in registries?
(24:09) – How should robotics be incorporated into robotic-assisted surgical training?
(26:26) – Should surgical trainees be trained given the plethora of robotics platforms available?
(29:36) - How could robotic-assisted surgical training be introduced in parallel to the current training systems?
(35:06) - How could robotic-assisted surgery and its adoption evolve over the next five years?

Previous Episode

Improving Patient Outcomes with Big Data

Big data is reshaping industries at an alarming rate, allowing businesses and organisations to better understand their customers. But big data isn’t just the reserve of the corporations. In fact, with more and more robotics systems making their way into the operating theatre, patient and procedure data has never been easier to capture.

But what kind of data is being collected? How is it being gathered? And what use could it be to patients, trainees and qualified surgeons?

In this episode of Surgical Robo-Talks, Jessica and co-host Fahad Ullah (Colorectal Trainee and ASiT Past Robotic Lead) are joined by Associate Medical Director at CMR Surgical and Consultant Urologist at University College London Hospitals, Justin Collins.

They’ll explore discuss how surgeons and educators can make sense of the tremendous amount of information being gathered and look at how this data could improve procedures and patient outcomes. Plus, they’ll explore how technologies such as computer-vision and tele-mentoring are being used to improve training and ask if there’s a place for AI in robotic-assisted surgery.

We’ll also ask:

(2:57) – What kind of data is being collected through robotic assisted surgery and how is it being used?
(4:24) – How do surgeons get access to their instrument data?
(5:23) – What is computer vision?
(6:44) – How can we determine which data is relevant and useful?
(8:49) – What kind of robotics data could be useful to patients? And when could patient access to that data become a reality?
(10:00) – How could robotics data be used to decrease the learning curve for trainees?
(11:31) - How should surgeons and educators process big data sets to make sure they draw the right conclusions concerning best practice guidelines?
(13:23) – How will big data help consultants beyond education?
(15:37) – What is the current state of registries in the UK?
(17:53) – What role could AI play in healthcare in the future?
(19:59) – What are the opportunities and limitations of tele-mentoring?
(21:29) – What can operating and remote surgeons do to set themselves up for success when working together for the first time?
(23:12) – Is tele-mentoring suitable for all trainees at every stage of the learning curve?
(24:49) - How can robotics-derived data help surgeons and trainees to meet performance metrics?
(26:29) – How can surgical robotics data be used to help trainees benchmark their progress?