"Smart" Surgical Tools for In-Situ Tissue Characterization
- Detailed Technology Description
- This invention is an intelligent medical tweezers that can measure tissue stiffnessand thickness, and transmit the data using built-in RF channels, enabling surgeons to make more informed suturing choices during surgery.
- Others
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Connie Wu, Amit Lal, Po-Cheng Chen, Full-Body Silicon Medical Tweezers for Cancerous Tissue Detection and Characterization, NNIN REU Research Accomplishments (2013)
- *Abstract
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Atpresent, most gastrointenstinal surgeries do not use any tissue monitoringdevices. The surgeon's expertise drives the choice of anastomotic technique to suture the tissue and,if a stapling device is chosen, the size of the staples to be used. This invention is an intelligent medical tweezers -- a class of sensor that can be integrated within surgical tools to measure tissue stiffness and thickness, and transmit the data using built-in RF channels.
Thistool set has the potential to revolutionize the choice of the anastomotictechnique and technology used by providing measurements of tissue characteristicswhich better inform the surgeon at the time of the surgical procedure.Specifically, the measurement of tissue stiffness and thickness can aid the surgeon in determining the best tissue suturing technique, such as what size staplesare needed, and whether hand suturing may be warranted for optimum tissue apposition and healing. These real-time measurements can enable better tissue-suturing decisions that could reduce thecurrent 1-7% postoperative dehiscence rate in which the tissue fails to heal appropriately. The reduction of the dehiscence rate hasthe potential to spare thousands of patients this catastrophic complication, save millions of dollars in health care expenses and reduce the cost of medical malpracticeto hospitals and physicians.
To minimize any potential complications the new tools are designed with no wires attached and with the abilityto be sterilized in an autoclave so that they can be used on the operatingfield. The tools will be the same toolsthat the surgeons are accustomed to using in shape and feel, and yet provideinformation about the tissue stiffness and size.
Potential Applications
- Tissue monitoring during gastrointestinal surgeries, e.g. colon surgery, intestinal resections and anastomoses
- Tissue diagnosis based on measurements, e.g. cancerous tissue detection
Advantages
- Provides real-time stiffness and thickness measurements not currently available to surgeons
- Enables improved decision making, potentially leading to more successful surgeries and fewer catastrophic failures
- Technology integrates with current surgical tools
- *Licensing
- Patrick Govangpjg26@cornell.edu(607) 254-2330
- Country/Region
- USA
