Health & Fitness - Robots may have a lighter touch

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Robots may have a lighter touch

LONDON, Ontario (UPI) -- Canadian researchers say a robot detected tumor tissue with a 35 percent lighter touch than that of humans.

Researchers at the University of Western Ontario and Canadian Surgical Technologies and Advanced Robotics in London used cows' livers containing small tumor-like blobs to test the ability of both robots and surgeons to feel or "palpate" for malignant tissue -- usually stiffer than the surrounding tissue.

The researchers found the robots' accuracy scores for detecting tumors -- depending on the robot control method used -- were between 59 percent and 90 percent better than those of the surgeons.

The robot is being developed to be small enough to be used in minimally invasive surgery, which minimizes tissue damage, infection risk, recovery time and costs, the researchers said.

"Using robots to detect tumors is not only feasible, but results in reduced tissue trauma and increased tumor detection," lead author Ana Luisa Trejos of Canadian Surgical Technologies and Advanced Robotics said in a statement.

The findings are published in the International Journal of Robotics Research.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

This news arrived on: 08/28/2009

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