Thread: Ramathibodi Hospital pioneers robot-assisted neurosurgery

BANGKOK’S Ramathibodi Hospital has become Thailand’s first hospital to conduct robot-assisted neurosurgery, a highly precise method that is considered safer than traditional procedures.

Robot-assisted surgery reportedly reduces the chance of mistakes to less than 1 per cent and shortens the time spent inserting surgical screws from up to two hours to just 20 minutes.

In a press conference last Tuesday, Dr Piyamitr Sritara, dean of Mahidol University’s Faculty of Medicine at Ramathibodi Hospital, announced the hospital’s success in utilising robot-assisted neurosurgery for patients suffering from brain, spinal cord, spine or spinal nerve disorders.

The surgery will be made available to all patients who require it regardless of the healthcare package they use, he said.

The Ramathibodi Foundation, which purchased the medical robot used in the procedures for Bt40 million, will also help with medical bills of low-income patients who require such surgery, he said.

Neurosurgeon Dr Sorayouth Chamnanvej said the Renaissance Robot, which was developed in Israel and has received the approval of the US Food and Drug Administration, in the first phase of procedures helps to set the target and direction of spinal screw placements.

more Ramathibodi Hospital pioneers robot-assisted neurosurgery

Ramathibodi hospital scores Asia’s first successful brain micro surgery with the aid of a robot

Ramathibodi hospital has successfully operated on the brain of a 77-year old patient to remove a small tumor with the aid of a robot – the first ever achievement of this kind of surgery in Asia.

Professor Dr Sorayuth Chamnanvech of neuro-surgery of surgery department said Monday that the 40-million baht robot was capable of conducting micro surgery, especially brain surgery, with high precision and very low error.

He admitted that to remove a brain tumor which is less than three centimeter in diameter by a neuro surgeon is already a difficult undertaking and the acceptable error for such a surgery is 3-5 mm.

However, Dr Sorayuth noted that the high-tech robot has minimal error margin of only 1 mm and, as such, it will be safer for the patient and he/she can recover faster after the surgery than conventional surgery.

He said that the robot is ideal in micro surgery to remove very small tumor in the brain or to treat some brain abnormalities such as Parkinson disease.

The advantages in the use of robot in surgery are that it reduces the chance of complications normally associated with conventional surgery and post-surgery symptoms such as paralysis, loss of sight or speeches or other disabilities.

Dr Sorayuth disclosed that the patient who was operated on with the aid of the robot was a 77-year old man with a history of memory loss and confusion. A two-centimeter tumor was found in his brain and he was operated on once.

He said that a second surgery had a high margin of error and so robot was recommended in helping the second surgery which was successfully conducted.

The patient could speak within 24 hours after the operation and he could be discharged from the hospital, but he was kept at the hospital for chemotherapy.

Ramathibodi hospital scores Asia?s first successful brain micro surgery with the aid of a robot - Thai PBS English News