NEW DELHI: The All India Institute of Medical Sciences conducted a successful spine surgery on a 50-year-old woman using American Robotic, a latest technology introduced two weeks ago.
Dr Bhavuk Garg, a surgeon at AIIMS who was also a part of the surgery team, said the premier institute is first among the Asian countries to have conducted the surgery using this technology. “The patient from West Bengal was diagnosed with a complicated spinal problem called chondrolysis. Her L5 bones were dislocated owing to which she was suffering from severe pain. We did the surgery last week and are happy how smoothly the process was completed.”
Regarding the technology, Garg noted that the device helps to reduce time taken for carrying out surgeries. While a general surgery takes around 3-4 hours, American Robotic brings it down to 2.5 hours. Earlier, doctors at AIIMS was using Israeli robotic technology for such surgeries.
“Firstly radiations are very less. And then the safety margin is very high with robotic surgery. The technology guides in real time where to place screws and rods accurately. There are less chances of bleeding, smaller incisions and reduced risk of complications and faster recovery,” said Dr Rajesh Malhotra, professor and head of Orthopaedics.
As the gadget costs about `20 crore, Garg said, he is working with IIT-Madras to develop similar devices. “We did one more surgery two days ago using the same technology. We are targeting to conduct atleast two surgeries in a week using the same,” he said.