If you’ve ever seen robots healing humans in a movie, you probably thought it seemed pretty futuristic.

“Sure – maybe we’ll have robots operating on us in a few decades… but not any time soon!”

Well… think again.

Although we may not have 100% robotic doctors yet, we DO already have surgical robots helping our top medical minds do their jobs – and the result is faster, more efficient, and safer surgical procedures.

If this information is surprising to you, don’t worry. Experts agree that surgical robots will positively change the world of medicine. But of course, we don’t expect you to take our word for it – that’s why this is called Innovations Explained, after all!

So, let’s dive into it. In this article we’ll answer: what are surgical robots, why do we use them, and just how common are they?

What are surgical robots?

Surgical robots (or medical robots) are machines that assist human surgeons with surgical procedures. They come in different shapes and sizes, so if you’re imagining C-3PO from Star Wars, maybe try thinking a bit smaller (and less sassy).

In fact, most of them look more like robotic spiders than doctors, with a bunch of arms for performing specialized functions:

This “robot-assisted surgery” is reserved for more complicated procedures – particularly procedures that require extreme precision, flexibility and sharp control.

The most common surgical robots use a camera attached to a special arm, along with additional mechanical arms with various (and often tiny) surgical instruments attached.

Your surgeon views the 3D image generated by the camera, allowing them to see inside your body. A computer next to the operating table is used to operate the arms and camera.

So the robot isn’t actually doing anything itself. Although the specifics can change depending on the procedure and technology, you can think of surgical robots as simply the “perfect assistant” for your (human) surgeon.

Why do we use surgical robots?

Think about it: Even the steadiest human hand of all time can’t compare to a machine. Plus, robots never flinch or get distracted… and they do EXACTLY what you tell them.

Those benefits may be obvious to you… but there’s one benefit that you may not consider: Surgical robots can use unique tools that are miniaturized to fit into small areas.

As such, there are two primary reasons to use surgical robots: first, they increase accuracy while reducing patient risk during operations, and second, they offer entirely new ways to heal the body – since robots can be built to use microscopic tools that humans simply can’t.

So yes… you can see this as yet another area where robots are coming to take our jobs. But in this case, we’re grateful – and it will be a while before the robots are actually in control (you can learn more about that in our article about Artificial Intelligence).

Bottom line: Human doctors are still very much in control of the important decisions and medical advice you receive.

What are surgical robots used for?

Right now, surgical robots are being used for a small number of purposes, but it’s growing rapidly.

The most common uses today involve delicate and complex procedures in urological, gynaecological, and cardiothoracic fields.

There IS one side effect of these surgical robots that might make some surgeons a little sad. The rise of robotics in medicine means they probably won’t get to yell out “scalpel!” while holding out their hands nearly as often… which seems to be an important part of their identity. But hey, at least they get to play with cool robots. (Oh, and they save more lives – that’s important, too!)