Robotics can lead to a reproducibly high-quality operative result for ear, nose, and throat patients

Abstract The success rates and morbidity of operations on the ear, nose, and throat (ENT) have improved markedly in the last 20—25 years. This has been largely due to improved vision, by microscopes and endoscopes, and has led to a greatly reduced hospital stay. During this time there has been minimal improvement in surgical tools. This paper discusses the need for robotic tools, detailing the clinical constraints that proposed solutions need to adhere to, and presenting a recently trialled micro drilling robot for creating a cochleostomy in the cochlear implant procedure.

[1]  P Daniel Knott,et al.  Contour and Paired‐Point Registration in a Model for Image‐Guided Surgery , 2005, The Laryngoscope.

[2]  Anna Piotrowska,et al.  Preservation of Residual Hearing in Children and Post-Lingually Deafened Adults after Cochlear Implantation: An Initial Study , 2002, ORL.

[3]  W. Fokkens,et al.  The fungal debate: where do we stand today? , 2007, Rhinology.

[4]  Fred F Telischi,et al.  Conservation of Residual Acoustic Hearing After Cochlear Implantation , 2006, Otology & neurotology : official publication of the American Otological Society, American Neurotology Society [and] European Academy of Otology and Neurotology.

[5]  Thomas Lenarz,et al.  Preservation of residual hearing with cochlear implantation: How and why , 2005, Acta oto-laryngologica.

[6]  A M Neumann,et al.  Image-Guided Transnasal Endoscopic Surgery of the Paranasal Sinuses and Anterior Skull Base , 1999, American journal of rhinology.

[7]  Jan Kiefer,et al.  Hearing preservation in cochlear implantation for electric acoustic stimulation , 2004, Acta oto-laryngologica.

[8]  Thomas Klenzner,et al.  Navigation as a quality management tool in cochlear implant surgery , 2004, The Journal of Laryngology & Otology.

[9]  B. Ferguson,et al.  The role of allergy in rhinosinusitis , 2009, Current opinion in otolaryngology & head and neck surgery.

[10]  A. Vlantis,et al.  How reliable is contact endoscopy of the nasopharynx in patients with nasopharyngeal cancer? , 2009, The Laryngoscope.

[11]  J. Graham,et al.  Cochlear implantation , 1995, BMJ.

[12]  S. J. Harris,et al.  The first clinical application of a "hands-on" robotic knee surgery system. , 2001, Computer aided surgery : official journal of the International Society for Computer Aided Surgery.

[13]  M. V. Griffiths,et al.  Controlling the penetration of flexible bone tissue using the stapedotomy microdrill , 2004 .

[14]  R. Kern,et al.  Superantigens and Chronic Rhinosinusitis: Detection of Staphylococcal Exotoxins in Nasal Polyps , 2005, The Laryngoscope.

[15]  Paul S. Morgan,et al.  The application accuracy of the PathFinder neurosurgical robot , 2003, CARS.

[16]  E Doden,et al.  On the functional morphology of the human petrous bone. , 1984, The American journal of anatomy.

[17]  P N Brett,et al.  An Automatic Technique for Micro-Drilling a Stapedotomy in the Flexible Stapes Footplate , 1995, Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Part H, Journal of engineering in medicine.