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Robotics In Cardiac Surgery: Roles and Benefits

By Dr. Rajneesh Malhotra in Cardiac Sciences , Cardiac Surgery (CTVS) , Robotic Surgery

Mar 06 , 2025 | 2 min read

Role Of Robotics In Cardiac Surgery

It is true that conventional surgery works perfectly and has been practised for many decades, but robotic surgery now offers the same benefits without the shortcomings of conventional surgery. Robotic surgery, or telemanipulation as it is technically called, was initially developed by NASA to provide astronauts with surgical assistance if needed. However, its use was quickly extrapolated and has since then been accepted by many specialities and has been gaining popularity in cardiac surgery.

Robotics is being used to harvest internal mammary arteries, as a conduit used in coronary artery bypass surgery, to close the holes in the heart (atrial septal defect), and to repair or replace mitral and aortic valves. Apart from this, it is also being used for surgery on the lungs, like bullectomy and lobectomy. The robotic surgery setup includes a surgeon's console, from which the lead surgeon controls the movement of the instruments and has a 3D vision of the surgical field. The instruments are attached to robotic arms that are on a cart. Apart from this, there is a vision cart featuring a screen with the same image of the surgical field as the surgeon's console through an HD camera inserted through a small 8mm port. A bedside assistant helps in changing the instruments when needed.

Robotic surgery offers benefits to both patients and surgeons. These include less bleeding, less pain in the postoperative phase, early recovery, return to daily routine activity, and better cosmesis, which ultimately translate to patient satisfaction. With the computer-enhanced 3D vision and fine instruments, the surgeon has a great range of motion at their wrists, making the surgical steps more precise and risk-free.

Like any new technology, there are some common myths associated with robotic cardiac surgery:

The robot does the operation; in reality, the surgeon controls all the instruments, and the smaller instruments allow for a more precise movement in limited space.
Patients have to follow precautions and a special diet with limited mobility after robotic surgery. In reality, patients return to their daily activities sooner than after conventional surgery and don’t have to exercise any special precautions or follow a special diet after robotic surgery.
Conventional surgery has better outcomes; in reality, Robotic or minimally invasive surgery is equally effective in giving successful outcomes as conventional surgery.

The landscape of surgery is rapidly changing, and surgeons are shifting to less invasive methods to provide patients with the same surgical outcome as conventional cardiac surgery. Robotics could be hailed as the future of cardiac surgery, having done well in other specialities like oncosurgery, urology, and gastrointestinal surgery. Robotics in cardiac surgery has a bright future, and it is here to stay.