Ashraf AboArafe
King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center in Jeddah succeeded in using a robot to implant EEG chips inside the brain of a patient suffering from stubborn epilepsy that is not responding to conventional treatments. With the aim of identifying the areas of epileptic foci in the brain; to be removed later, in a modern medical procedure carried out for the first time in the Middle East.
The robot technology relies on minimal surgical intervention, represented by making multiple holes of no more than 2 mm in the skull, to implant electroencephalography chips, with the aim of measuring electrical activity from inside the head, and diagnosing areas where epileptic foci arise, which makes robot technology an alternative. It is superior to the traditional “Leksell-frame” method in calculating the necessary measurements and determining the correct locations for making holes, which takes more time and doubles the effort.
The use of the robot in epilepsy surgery comes due to its extreme accuracy in determining the locations of epileptic foci, and the short duration of the medical procedure, with a high degree of safety when compared to traditional techniques, which contributes to improving the final results for the patient. The use of the robot is not limited to implanting slices in the brain, but also includes multiple other surgeries related to neurological diseases.
Robotic surgery is a recent medical trend in the world’s leading medical centers, allowing doctors to perform many complex operations with greater accuracy, flexibility and control. It is also characterized by a less invasive degree than surgical techniques, which contributes to reducing the recovery period and reducing the incidence of side complications for patients.
This achievement is part of “KFSH&RC”‘s continuous endeavors to harness all capabilities and bring in the latest technologies to improve results, patient experience and operating efficiency, to be the ideal choice for every patient in the field of providing specialized health care, and to make its services available to a wider segment of beneficiaries.
King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center is ranked among the most prominent hospitals in the world in providing specialized health care, and it recently ranked 20th in the list of the best healthcare institutions in the world for the year 2023, and the first in the Middle East and Africa, according to the classification of Brand Finance ).
