Post by Professor Shafi Ahmed

There are roughly 120 surgical robot companies globally, which are bringing down costs and essentially democratising access. I tested out 7 different robots at the European Association of Urology in London over the weekend. Thanks to Domenico Veneziano, MD, PhD, FEBU for the invitation. Urology has always led the way in utilising robots, as the first robotic prostatectomy was performed in 2000. The rise of Chinese companies in this field is extraordinary. However, the highlight was trying out the Intuitive Da Vinci 5, which is simply in a different league with a beautiful UI and UX. A decade ahead of its rivals, but also the most expensive at around £3 million. There were 2 single-port robots on display. The SP from Intuitive and the one from Edge Medical from China, which are being used for Gynaecological procedures and some Urology procedures. I remember when I was pioneering laparoscopic single port surgery in the UK around 2010. The operations were a struggle and technically demanding. I performed around 20 Single Port colorectal resections from right hemicolectomies, anterior resections and panproctocolectomies using a variety of different ports and instruments. The technology today has moved the needle and is mindblowing. The robots also capture a lot of data, hand movements, eye movements, etc, which should provide insights into surgical training, ability and outcomes. This is an exciting space.