Researchers complete 1st successful robotic eye surgery test on humans: 5 insights

Oxford, England-based University of Oxford researchers completed the first successful trial of robot-assisted retinal surgery at Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital, Medical Xpress reports.

Here are five insights:

1. Six of the 12 patients involved in the trial were randomly selected to undergo robot-assisted surgery. The other half underwent standard manual surgery to remove a membrane from the back of the eye.

2. The procedure was performed with equal or better efficacy using the robot than in the traditional manual approach.

3. In the trial's second phase, surgeons used the robotic device to insert a fine needle under the retina to dissolve blood in three patients experiencing age-related macular degeneration. The procedure resulted in improved vision for all three patients.

4. Researchers tested the Preceyes Surgical System, which was designed and developed by the medical robotics firm Preceyes. Oxford University signed an agreement with Preceyes in 2016 to test the robotic surgical system.

5. The researchers' next step is to use the robotic surgical device to deliver a gene therapy to the retina in early 2019, according to University of Oxford Ophthalmology Professor Robert MacLaren.

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