Robotic surgery is ready for prime time in India: Against the motion

• Main Author: Tehemton E Udwadia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2015-01-01
• Series: Journal of Minimal Access Surgery
• Subjects: Robotic surgery; robotics; outcome comparisons; cost benefit ratio; surgical priorities in developing countries
• Online Access: http://www.journalofmas.com/article.asp?issn=0972-9941;year=2015;volume=11;issue=1;spage=5;epage=9;aulast=Udwadia

The use of Robotic Surgery as a purported adjunct and aid to Minimal Access Surgery (MAS) is growing in several areas. The acknowledged advantages as also the obvious and hidden disadvantages of Robotic Surgery are highlighted. Survey of literature shows that while Robotic Surgery is "feasible" and the results are "comparable" there is no convincing evidence that it is any better than MAS or even open surgery in most areas. To move "Robotic Surgery is ready for prime time in India" with no less than two dozen robots, many sub-optimally utilized for a population of 1.2 billion seems untenable.