Two Filipino urologists based in Shanghai, China, performed the Philippines' first remote surgery on Tuesday, August 25, operating on a patient at the Urology Center of the Philippines in Quezon City.
The surgeons remotely controlled a surgical robot to carry out a prostate procedure on a 53-year-old Filipino man, according to reports by Chinese state media citing local reports.
How it worked
The doctors manipulated the robotic equipment in real time over a high-speed internet connection, coordinating between Shanghai and Manila. The names of the surgeons, the robotic system used and the patient's condition after the operation were not disclosed in the initial reports.
Why it matters
Telesurgery allows specialists to operate on patients located in different cities or countries, which could widen access to complex procedures in places that lack specialist surgeons. The technique depends on stable, low-latency connections between the surgeon's console and the robot.
In an archipelago where many specialists are based in major cities, the technology could eventually help bring advanced care closer to patients in the provinces.
