MIRACLE II

Minimally invasive, highly precise, patient-friendly – this is bone surgery of the future. Researchers in the MIRACLE project at the University of Basel are working hard to make this vision a reality. The incisions made by their laser robot are five times finer than those made by conventional bone cutters, while miniature sensors and a 3D software programme promote patient safety.

Minimally invasive, patient-friendly interventions have become standard in many areas of medical care, but not in bone surgery. Indeed, modern bone cutters are fairly similar to primitive medieval instruments, and cutting bones remains a crude affair. The team in the MIRACLE project at the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel led by Philippe Cattin, Florian Thieringer and Georg Rauter want to change this.

The researchers in Basel are developing a robot-guided system that uses lasers to cut bones. Not only can the “laser scalpel” make extremely fine, precise incisions straight through the bone, it can cut curved and S-shaped lines too. This means that broken bones can be fitted together again like three-dimensional puzzle pieces, which leads to faster healing. In addition, sensors placed in the endoscope tip of the laser and a virtual reality software programme ensure that the laser cuts only the tissue that is targeted.

The team have already begun testing their system in knee surgery. Making ultra-exact incisions in the bone is, however, just the first step. Afterwards, the damaged bone requires an implant to heal. Seeking ways to create made-to-measure implants for individual patients and then insert them using minimally invasive techniques is one of the main objectives in MIRACLE II, the follow-up project to MIRACLE.