The Vascular and Interventional Radiology Department (VINRAD) at Ghent University Hospital (UZ Gent) recently became the first in the Benelux to use a robot for brain surgeries.
When treating an aneurysm or swelling in the cerebral artery, the doctor normally inserts a flexible catheter into a blood vessel through the arm or groin. From there, the catheter is manoeuvred through the blood vessels to the brain, supported by X-rays and contrast medium to visualise the vessels and blood flow.
"For several months now, the robot has been taking over the execution of the treatment," Department Head Professor Luc Defreyne said in a press release. "We control the robot via a panel of joysticks, from a cockpit shielded from radiation. The robot moves the catheter, metal wires or stents to the site of the aneurysm."
"Meanwhile, we closely monitor the work via classical imaging. Should the robot ever get stuck, we can intervene immediately and take over the treatment manually," he added.
Safer and more effective
With doctors taking a seat in a cockpit, they no longer have to stand with a lead apron in the harmful X-rays around the patient, making the work safer and more comfortable. The nurse can also keep more distance from the radiation when the robot is at work.
"'The robot also provides efficiency gains. Nurses now play a greater role in the preparation and execution of the procedure and the interventional radiologists can focus on their core tasks," said deputy chief nurse Elise Devlieghere. "This makes the nurse's job more substantively interesting."
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The robot – a Siemens Corindus CorPath GRX – is already used in some Belgian hospitals for cardiology procedures. Now, for the first time, it has also been applied to treat vascular diseases in the brain. "In the long term, the robot could navigate itself using micro cameras or sensors, but that remains in the future," said Defreyne.
The robot costs about €500,000, but because we are in the test phase, the patient will not notice any of that. "We receive important financial support from the UZ Gent Innovation Fund," Defreyne said. "In the future, we hope to use the robot for any surgery used to treat an aneurysm, at no extra cost to the patient."
