Off-the-jaw system adds tactile feedback to minimally invasive surgery

Developed at New York University (NYU)’s Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Microfluidics and Microdevices Laboratory (AMMLab), the ‘off-the-jaw’ system integrates force and angle sensors into the handle of laparoscopic tools, providing surgeons with real-time measurements of grasping forces and insights into tissue stiffness and thickness. Their findings are detailed in IEEE Access.

Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) involves small incisions, reducing pain, shortening recovery times, and lowering infection risks. However, traditional MIS tools remove the surgeon’s sense of touch, making it difficult to determine the appropriate force to apply or distinguish between different types of tissue. This lack of tactile sensation can lead to errors, such as over- or under-grasping delicate tissues.

The NYU Abu Dhabi researchers’ off-the-jaw design is said to mark a ‘significant departure’ from previous approaches, which typically placed sensors at the jaws of surgical tools. It is the first solution to separate the sensing mechanism from the surgical site itself.