people often assume that anything “new” is automatically “better,” especially when it is endorsed by trusted authorities like doctors. Unfortunately, this assumption is misguided. In the field of orthopedics, we have witnessed numerous innovations in the past few decades that have proven to be either harmful at worst or ineffective at best. Examples of such failed innovations include metal-on-metal total hips, computer-assisted total knees, etc.
It is important to clarify that true “robots” for total joint procedures do not currently exist. Highly sophisticated robots, such as the Da Vinci system, are being employed in other surgical fields for procedures like prostate surgery, where the surgeon operates remotely.
In orthopedics, the so-called “robots” that have been promoted for the past 15 years are essentially basic cutting arms controlled by the surgeon’s hand. They are not remote-controlled or fully autonomous but claim to assist the surgeon in making precise bone cuts and in avoiding inadvertent injury to ligaments and other soft tissues for these reasons that I don’t use a robot.
Dr. Dev Padia
Specialist Orthopaedic Pain, Fracture Ligaments Injury, Best Hip and Knee Replacement Surgeon, Surat, Gujarat.