The evaluation of human telemanipulation under spatial misalignment conditions in minimally invasive surgery

Bin Zheng isn’t daunted by challenge. At 16, he entered medical school. By age 27, he was a specialist in pediatric orthopedic surgery at a hospital affiliated with China Medical University. Now he is in Canada focusing his efforts on research to refine and improve the technology used in minimally invasive surgery. Because of more rapid healing and other benefits, this surgical practice is increasingly common. Zheng is working on an issue, which he has experienced first-hand, that occurs when images projected by the tiny cameras inserted into the body to guide the surgeon’s action do not align exactly with the area of the body on which the surgeon is working. His immediate goals are to assess the effects of this misalignment on surgical performance and patient outcome and also look for ways of improving the technology. In the long term, Zheng hopes to use these findings in the development of a systematic approach (scientific methodology) that can be applied to the evaluation of any new health technology.