Password Magazine - Issue 25
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Under the increasing pressures to lower healthcare costs and still
improve outcomes, minimally invasive methods are replacing
traditional surgical procedures as quickly as the technology allows.
Many treatments that would previously have needed open surgery can
already be carried out using endoscopes, catheters and needles. Such
minimally invasive approaches reduce trauma, thus minimizing damage
to healthy tissue and requiring less pain medication, which is
better for the patient and shortens recovery times. Many minimally
invasive procedures can even be carried out in an outpatient
setting. Generally, they are also less costly for the hospital,
which is always important in delivering the best possible healthcare
on ever tightening budgets. There are however challenges. During
open surgery, surgeons can see where they are and what they are
doing. For minimally invasive interventions, interventional
specialists need other information sources to be able to view their
actions.
DownloadPDF file of complete article (170 KB) + The future of minimally invasive surgery For more informationGuy Shechter Philips Research E-mail: guy.shechter@philips.com |
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