ABSTRACT
The field of surgery is entering a time of great change. The advantages of minimally invasive approaches to conventional surgical operations have become well established. Advances in computer technology have meant that robots, previously regarded as too clumsy and dangerous for use in the operating theatre, are now commercially available to provide intelligent assistance with routine tasks. More significantly, robots are able to manipulate surgical instruments with greater precision than the surgeon’s own hand, with unlimited repetition and without fatigue.
