Zou Yuqi, Liu Yu, Li Yang, Yang Lvyun, Liu Yang, He Kaidong, Xiang Yuanzhuo, Ouyang Jingyu, Li Pan, Liang Jun, Zhou Ning, Zang Huaping, Ruan Nan, Li Peng, Xiao Mi, Lu Xiang, Zheng Ruilin, Hu Lili, Tao Guangming
Research Center for Intelligent Fiber Devices and Equipment, Department of Geriatrics, Department of Orthopedics, and Key Laboratory of Vascular Aging, Ministry of Education, Tongji Hospital of Tongji Medical College, State Key Laboratory of New Textile Materials and Advanced Processing, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, School of Materials Science and Engineering, and School of Physical Education, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China.
School of Integrated Circuits, Shandong University, Jinan 250101, China.
Sci Adv. 2025 Aug 29;11(35):eadt1809. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adt1809. Epub 2025 Aug 27.
Conventional methods, such as open and arthroscopy-assisted surgery, still encounter challenges in terms of tool flexibility when addressing knee diseases in patients. Robotics has enhanced the precision and efficiency of numerous surgical procedures. However, there is still a lack of minimally invasive surgical tools capable of flexibly resecting knee lesions. Here, we present a flexible fiberbot that integrates steerable midinfrared laser ablation and active navigation functions. The fiberbot features an internal multicore structure for midinfrared laser delivery and an external magnetic elastomer, allowing precise control under an applied magnetic field. The fiberbot was demonstrated to perform precise navigation and steering in a constrained spherical model and an isolated pig knee joint. Moreover, the fiberbot was further demonstrated in steerable laser ablation for leg bones of rats in vivo. Given its compact design, safer actuation, and quicker manipulation, our fiberbot is expected to pave a promising avenue for future knee surgery.
传统方法，如开放手术和关节镜辅助手术，在治疗患者膝关节疾病时，在工具灵活性方面仍面临挑战。机器人技术提高了许多外科手术的精度和效率。然而，仍然缺乏能够灵活切除膝关节病变的微创手术工具。在此，我们展示了一种集成了可转向中红外激光消融和主动导航功能的柔性纤维机器人。该纤维机器人具有用于中红外激光传输的内部多芯结构和外部磁性弹性体，可在施加的磁场下实现精确控制。该纤维机器人在受限球形模型和离体猪膝关节中展示了精确导航和转向能力。此外，该纤维机器人还在大鼠腿部骨骼的可转向激光消融体内实验中得到进一步验证。鉴于其紧凑的设计、更安全的驱动和更快的操作，我们的纤维机器人有望为未来的膝关节手术开辟一条充满希望的道路。
