Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi and All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) New Delhi has developed a telerobotic ultrasound system. This system allows remote ultrasound access through a robotic arm. The system has been developed by a research team that included professionals from IIT, Delhi, AIIMS, New Delhi, and Addverb Technologies, said a statement from IIT Delhi.
The research team at IIT Delhi was led by Prof. Chetan Arora and Prof. Subir Kumar Saha, while Dr. Chandrashekhara was responsible from AIIMS and Mr. Suvayan Nandi was the lead contributor from Addverb Technologies. In the regular procedure of ultrasound, the doctor stands close to the patients. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, it was necessary to maintain social distance between the doctor and the patient. Doctors prefer using the “cross-sectional imaging” technique for an ultrasound during pandemic, and as per the statement from IIT Delhi and AIIMS this technique is “more expensive and less dynamic”.
In the statement, Prof. Chetan Arora and Prof. Subir Kumar Saha from IIT Delhi said, “This requirement came to us from the faculty of AIIMS New Delhi, when the whole nation had been put on lockdown in June 2020, and the number of cases and deaths was rising rapidly. The prevailing situation impacted regular health care services, especially those involving direct physical contact with patients like ultrasound scanning. We wanted to contribute to the safety of healthcare professionals by leveraging our expertise in robotic technology.”
Dr. Chandrashekhara, AIIMS, New Delhi, “This system will promote healthcare and make our system more prepared for further pandemics. Besides its role in the pandemic, it will allow a better outreach of ultrasound imaging to remote rural areas of India. The radiologist manipulates the ultrasound probe remotely from a remote location, acquires the ultrasonography, and then transmits them to the monitors at the doctor's end through a Wi-Fi network. Sitting at a remote location, the doctor can visualize all the images and assess the patient, similar to a clinical setting. The facility can also be extended for global outreach.
