Coming soon to an OR near you!

Beyond the visible spectrum

SATAVA: There’s another dimension: Why are we only using cameras that see in the visible spectrum? Why aren’t we using infrared and ultraviolet cameras as other industries do?

We may not need the sense of touch because an infrared camera can show us all the blood vessels by temperature change. Health care hasn’t even looked at off-the-shelf technologies that other industries have used for 25 years.

PARK: Narrow-band imaging and confocal microscopy are now available, but we haven’t even started to look at how we could apply them intra-abdominally.

Will biotechnology bring down the curtain on surgeons?

SATAVA: We haven’t talked about the extraordinary revolution in biotechnology and how it’s either going to change the way a surgeon works or puts the surgeon out of business.

We may not have to do surgery if we can manipulate tissue on a molecular level. That’s 20–25 years out. It’s going to take that long for nanotechnology to develop usable products for health care.

The human element

RATTNER: We didn’t dwell on the human factor. The functioning of a highly skilled team and the interaction among team members is fertile ground for further research. Greater attention paid to team training and simulation crisis management will pay off in patient safety.

At the end of the day, the priority is that if we’re going to operate faster and more efficiently with more complex procedures, we have to get to Six Sigma or better safety levels.

Disclosures

Dr Park disclosed an affiliation with Stryker Endoscopy. Dr Sandberg disclosed affiliations with LiveData, Inc, Cambridge, MA; and Radianse, Inc, Lawrence, MA. Dr Satava disclosed an affiliation with Medical Education Technologies, Inc, Sarasota, FL. Dr Rattner had no affiliations to disclose.