Robot implant stretches cells to counter rare birth defect

The device - created by researchers from Sheffield University's Engineering Faculty and Boston's Children Hospital, Harvard Medical School – was designed for infants with oesophageal atresia. Affecting around one in 4,000 babies in the US and Europe, the disease is characterised by a gap in the oesophagus that stops food reaching the stomach.

Traditionally, the defect is treated using the Foker procedure, whereby sutures are used to manually bring the upper and lower parts of the food pipe together. But while this method helped inspire the robot, the team believes the new technology can deliver better outcomes.

"Although the technique is one of the best standards, sometimes the sutures surgeons attach to the oesophagus can tear which can result in repetitive surgeries or scar tissue can form that can cause problems for the patient in the future,” said Dr Dana Damian from Sheffield’s Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering.