(Health Korea News / Yu Ji-in) The research team of professors Kim Sang-hyun, Choi Hyeok-sun, Geum Bo-ra, and Jeon Hoon-jae from the Department of Gastroenterology at Korea University Anam Hospital recently developed a new therapeutic endoscopy system that combines robotic technology with gastrointestinal therapeutic endoscopic procedures.
Endoscopic procedures play an important role in the treatment of digestive diseases. In particular, endoscopic submucosal resection is a procedure that removes tumors or lesions inside the digestive tract using an endoscope, and is mainly used to treat early-stage cancer or precancerous lesions in the digestive tract, such as the esophagus, stomach, and colon.
Endoscopic submucosal resection has the advantage of removing larger lesions and preserving organ function as much as possible compared to conventional endoscopic mucosal resection. The recovery period is short and the complication rate is low. On the other hand, because it requires sophisticated techniques, it must be performed by a skilled specialist, and the difficulty of the procedure is high, making it difficult to commercialize it widely.
To overcome these limitations, the research team developed a new therapeutic endoscopic robot platform by grafting cutting-edge robotic technology onto endoscopic procedures in collaboration with Korea University’s College of Engineering and Endobotics. Using an ultra-miniature robot that can be attached to an endoscope, they performed endoscopic submucosal resection of gastric and colonic lesions and analyzed the effects.
Research results from animal experiments have shown that the tissue incision speed of endoscopic robotic submucosal resection is more than twice as fast, making the procedure faster and without complications than conventional endoscopic submucosal resection. Areas that are difficult to access with conventional endoscopic surgery due to their difficult location can be removed more easily with robotic endoscopic surgery.
The research team presented the latest research results at Digestive Disease Week 2024 held in Washington, D.C. from May 18 to 21, and was recognized for the precision and safety of the procedure. At the Endo 2024 International Congress on Endoscopy held for six days from July 4, the team was recognized for leading the way in innovative endoscopic procedures by live-streaming the process of resecting a tumor using an endoscopic robot for the first time in the world.
Professor Choi Hyuk-soon said, “The significance of this study lies in the development of robotic technology to enable faster and safer treatment of gastrointestinal tumors,” adding, “It is expected to increase patient satisfaction with surgery as it enables safe and highly accurate endoscopic procedures by safely reaching the lesion while the ultra-small robot is embedded in the endoscope.”
The studies, ‘Robot-assisted gastric endoscopic submucosal dissection significantly improves procedure time at challenging dissection locations’ and ‘A Novel Retractable Robotic Device for Colorectal Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection’, were published in the world-renowned academic journals Surgical Endoscopy and Gut Liver, respectively.
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