Frost and Sullivan have awarded the North American Product Differentiation Award for 2011 to BK Medical’s Advanced Robotic Ultrasound Technology (ART). ART ultrasound solution is the first complete solution that combines surgeon controlled ultrasound with robotic assisted surgery. The ART solution comprises an ultrasound system and transducers that can be controlled from a robotic console.
Flex Focus Ultrasound system
The ART solution includes the Flex Focus 700 ultrasound imaging system from BK Medical, ProART and 3DART transducers and a RST Robotic Stationary Transducer Arm. Research Analyst with Frost and Sullivan explained that the ART system has been designed specifically to suit operating room requirements. The imaging system displays the images in the picture-in-picture format. The system also provides touch screen operability and a handheld remote using which surgeons can perform surgeries with enhanced control. The system is provided with a power back up pack for four hours to ensure operational continuity in environments that have limited access to power source. The ProART transducer is the first curved linear array transducer that is dedicated to robotic-assisted surgery. The linear array fits into a standard sized trocar and images in two and three dimensional colour and also spectral Doppler modes easily.
The 3DART transducer is an endocavity transducer that is equipped with a built in high-resolution, three-dimensional data acquisition system. The transducer provides the surgeon with enhanced access to anatomy and targeted organs. The patient experiences minimum discomfort during surgery due to the small diameter of the 3DART transducer. The ART system has already been used on robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN) and can be used in performing robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP). While performing RARP procedures with the ART solution, the surgeons are provided with clearer images of the prostate, borders, nerve bundles and in marking out the tumour margins. BK Medical is now focussing on extending the ART solution to performing hysterectomy.