PARIS (Reuters Health) - A robotic surgical assistant that could help a surgeon perform a variety of specialised operations in remote locations should be developed within 5 years, according to the French army's medical corps.

The project, called Maestro (Multi Disciplinary Assistant for Enhanced Surgical Telerobotic), was outlined to Jacques Chirac on Tuesday as the French President visited army medical facilities.

Professor Michel Desgeorges, head of neurosurgery at the army training hospital in Val-de-Grace, Paris, told Reuters Health: "The aim is to permit multi-skilled surgeons or their juniors to carry out delicate operations in isolated areas such as in Afghanistan or on an aircraft carrier at sea, with the help of these specialists. Thus, we will be able to avoid the dangers of evacuating the patient."

"With military operations, mobilising all our specialist surgeons is simply inconceivable. It would cost a fortune and some of them would not have enough to do. It is better to mobilise a general surgeon who can carry out 80% of operations alone and, when the intervention is particularly delicate, he can call upon the aid of a specialist and a robotic assistant."

Robots currently in use are usually programmed in only one speciality, such neurosurgery or orthopaedic surgery.

"By contrast, this assistant is being developed to be used in all disciplines," explained Prof. Desgeorges.

"Contrary to current remote-controlled robotic assistants, this one will not intervene directly. It is the surgeon who will operate. The robot will only be there to assist by preventing any inappropriate actions. It's a question of robotic prevention."

The surgeon carrying out the operation will give the patient's details to the specialist, who will then programme the robot to stop the surgeon's instruments if they stray too far from the target.

"For example, if the surgeon is meant to open a bone without touching a nerve, the surgeon's drill, connected to the assistant, will stop as soon as it approaches the nerve in question."

Surgeons from the medical corps do not believe the assistant will be difficult to create. The army has set up a multi-disciplinary surgical group, Robotac, to develop it.

"If it gets the financing, the project could be completed within 5 years," says Prof. Desgeorges.

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