Medical Technology

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Medical Technology

Technology plays a significant role in all parts of our lives today. It therefore follows that technology cannot be left out in the medical field. With complex surgeries and other procedures being carried out by doctors every day, medical technology can go a long way in solving many of the problems encountered by staff in the medical field. Among such solutions include reduction of human error as the robots and other machines used in medical procedures are quite precise. However, there are many concerns as to whether the benefits of medical technology outweigh the disadvantages such as deaths and other injuries. While even one fatality or injury cannot be taken lightly or dismissed, the benefits that have been brought by technology to medicine are noteworthy, and with further advances, we stand to gain even more.

Invasive surgeries often pose multiple risks and complications for patients. Many surgical patients would, therefore, be more relaxed if the procedures were to be minimally invasive. The da Vinci Surgical System aims to do just that. Some of its pros include a monitor that allows for better visibility, robotic arms that are precise thus reducing errors and a record recovery rate as a result of the minimally invasive procedure (Source B). There have been complications from the da Vinci system such as deaths and other injuries. In this case, there need to be more studies carried out into the system especially by the engineers to pinpoint the cause of these malfunctions. The system should not merely be dismissed as with fine-tuning, there is potential to overhaul how surgeries are carried out. While this is being done, however, the patients should come first, and this calls for regulation especially from the FDA. This is a significant area of concern as the FDA stated that it does not have the authority to supervise training (Source B), raising the question of precisely who will protect the patients’ interests in this case. BBC reports similar cases of complications from procedures assisted by robots but does not examine if these complications resulted directly as a consequence of using the robots (Source D).

A research paper written by the American Society of Medical Engineers paints a brighter picture. Minimally invasive procedures have benefited a lot from the use of surgical assistants which are robots that can aid surgeons even from outside of the operating rooms. The main advantage is the 3DHD imaging that helps doctors see better inside patients (Source C). Rehabilitation robots also play a crucial role in helping patients recover from conditions such as traumatic injuries or neuromuscular diseases. Sanitation and disinfecting robots can disinfect surfaces in cases of highly infectious viruses thus reducing the risk to humans. Robotic prescription systems have increased the accuracy of prescriptions thus reducing human error or contamination in the dispensation of drugs (Source C). From this research paper, medical technology is an essential part of practicing medicine in hospitals and patients also stand to gain a lot from its use. The complications and challenges should also be highlighted for clarity.

Micro-sized robots are another exciting potential in medical technology. Several experiments have been carried out involving these micro-robots that can swim through the body fluids of humans. They are directed to search for a particular diseased area of the body such as a tumor and on reaching that area; the robot treats it with drugs (Source E). The experiments such as the one in the Max Planck Institute are unprecedented, and if successful, it would bring revolutionary changes to patient treatment. Artificial Intelligence is an essential tool in the analysis of medical data and helping the medical staff determine the best courses of treatment for their patients (Source E). The use of these micro-sized robots would take away the need to open up patients in complicated and risky surgical procedures. An example of these is when patients have tumors that are surgically inoperable due to the fact that the benefits of the surgery are outweighed by the risk of complications that could occur.

From the above articles, it is clear that medical technology is an area that cannot be taken lightly. Technology has the potential and ability to revolutionize how patients are treated, surgeries carried out and drugs dispensed. However, it is essential to take into account the risks that have been documented in research and look into ways of addressing and dealing with these incidents that include injuries and even deaths. The desire for profit in companies in medical technology such as Intuitive should not take precedence over the safety of the patients being treated. To this effect, there must be guidelines to be followed both in the training of doctors using such technologies and also in regulating the use of technologies such as robots. This has been illustrated to be a gray area with the FDA having no authority over these matters. This being said, the promises that are offered by medical technology are quite thrilling to imagine. Just a few years from now, treatment of patients could be completely different characterized by fewer cases of errors and exponentially faster rates of recovery. We should, therefore, look forward to the future of medical technology both hope and a touch of caution. Medical technology is on the path towards transforming medical care all over the world for the better.

Works Cited

Source B (Andrew W. Lehren The da Vinci surgical robot: A medical breakthrough with risks for patients, NBC)

Source C (Mark Crawford, ​Top Robotic Applications in Medicine ​ ,American Society of Mechanical Engineers ​)

Source D (BBC, Robotic surgery linked to 144 deaths in the US, ​ BBC Medical Technology)​

Source E (Len Calderone, Advancements of Robotics in Medicine, Robotics Tomorrow)