The Role of the Versius Surgical Robotic System in the Paediatric Population

Abstract

The uptake of robot-assisted surgery has continuously grown since its advent in the 1990s. While robot-assisted surgery is well-established in adult surgery, the rate of uptake in paediatric surgical centres has been slower. The advantages of a robot-assisted system, such as improved visibility, dexterity, and ergonomics, could make it a superior choice over the traditional laparoscopic approach. However, its implementation in the paediatric surgery arena has been limited primarily due to the unavailability of appropriately sized instruments as per paediatric body habitus, therefore, requiring more technologically advanced systems. The Versius surgical robotic system is a new modular platform that offers several benefits such as articulated instruments which pass through conventional 5 mm ports, compact arms for easier manoeuvrability and patient access, the ability to mimic conventional port placements, and adaptive machine learning concepts. Prior to its introduction to paediatric surgery, it needs to go through a careful pre-clinical and clinical research program.

Keywords: Versius surgical robotic system; laparoscopic surgery; paediatric surgery; robot-assisted surgery.

Figure 1

Overview of the Versius surgical robotic system: (A) schematic overview of the Versius system and (B) the operational set-up image of the Versius system. BSU, bedside unit.