SS Innovations to start first human trials for remote telesurgery soon

Srivastava added that telesurgery will allow surgeons to perform procedures on patients who are not physically present in the same location as them

Robotic surgery firm SS Innovations could soon start the first human trials for remote telesurgery, pending regulatory approval. The trials, which would allow procedures on patients who are not physically present with the surgeon, could mark a milestone in surgical innovation.  

Speaking on the timeframe of starting the trials, Sudhir Srivastava, managing director and chairman of SS Innovations, said the company is waiting to receive approval in the next 60-80 days to conduct small telesurgeries on humans.

“The approval for such in-human clinical trials will come from the Hospital Institutional Ethics Committees (IEC), which is present in every hospital. Wherever telesurgery will be conducted, the hospital IEC’s approval will be taken,” said Srivastava.

The move comes after the firm successfully conducted the first-ever animal trial of remote surgery in India last week.

There are less than 200 robotic installations in India. “SS Innovations currently operates 32 robotic installations. Our goal is to install an additional 100 robotic installations in various hospitals in 2024,” said Srivastava.

“We used our SSI Mantra surgical robotic system to perform four complex procedures on a pig model. The procedures undertaken were radical nephrectomy (removal of the entire kidney), cystectomy (removal of the urinary bladder), cholecystectomy (removal of the gallbladder), and prostatectomy (partial or complete removal of the prostate),” he said.

Srivastava explained that telesurgery enables surgeons to conduct procedures on patients who are not physically present in the same location. This is facilitated by robotic systems that are controlled remotely by the surgeon, with real-time data and visual feedback ensuring precision and safety.

“In our animal trial, the remote surgery was conducted from a distance of 5 km away from where the pig model was kept,” he said.

Such procedures can also be used by doctors to operate on patients in remote areas. Another advantage of remote robotic procedures can be its potential use to operate on soldiers on the frontlines or people in a disaster-stricken region.

Speaking on the chances of making such a procedure a reality, Srivastava said, while the high cost and lack of access to robotic installations have restricted the growth of robotic surgery in India, improvements in high-speed connectivity and technology can help in making telesurgery popular. “There has certainly been a rise in the number of people opting for robotic surgeries,” he said.

However, the lack of accessible robotic installations needed to train more professionals remains a significant challenge. Several robotic surgery bodies have also petitioned the health ministry to incorporate robotic surgery into the medical curriculum through the National Medical Commission (NMC).