Robots With A Heart

Heart patients waiting to go under the scalpel for a coronary bypass now have a different option: using robotic help for their surgery. The Delhi-based Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre has recently introduced the da Vinci Surgical System - or robotic endoscopy - for coronary bypass surgeries.

The da Vinci offers an alternative to the traditional Cardiac Angio Bypass Grafting (CABG) procedure, more popularly known as bypass surgery.

The advantage of the da Vinci is that the patient is spared much of the trauma and loss of blood. For those who are worried about a robotically-assisted surgery, the good news is that the Escorts Institute has already completed its first successful surgery with the help of da Vinci.

A bypass surgery is performed to tackle coronary artery blockages. The procedure allows the surgeon to access the heart and the blocked arteries, usually through an incision in the chest.

The purpose of the surgery is to increase blood circulation and nourishment to the heart muscle.

Under the procedure, healthy arteries - or veins - are