World’s first contact-free robotic-guided laser osteotome is CE certified
Swiss MedTech start-up Advanced Osteotomy Tools (AOT) has received CE certification for its patented CARLO® system which cuts bones precisely and contact-free with a specialized laser using a robot. CARLO stands for Cold Ablation Robot-guided Laser Osteotome.
The laser beam vaporizes the water inside the bone substrate within milliseconds, so the bone can be precisely removed precisely in layers, leaving no residue, and the incision can be as deep as desired or until the bone is severed.
This new form of osteotomy enables previously unachievable functional, patientspecific geometries, precisely fitting requirements. The laser head, mounted on a tactile robotic arm, is controlled by a navigation system.
Safety for patients and staff is of the highest priority for CARLO. Every movement of the patient or change of the operation set-up results in immediate termination and the laser head refocuses itself automatically until the correct position is achieved again. This ensures automatic readjustment of any changes from a safe distance without patient contact. No tools need to be removed from the operating area; no drill or saw blade can bend, break-off and harm the patient. The pre-operative plan of the bone incision, created electronically, is passed on to the robot for autonomous execution without media discontinuity.
This device marks an important step in the digitization of surgical interventions.
For CE certification, CARLO was used for the first time in a clinical study in the context of operations for jaw correction, which has proven the efficiency and safety of the technology in a clinical environment. The University Hospital Basel, the Medical University of Vienna (AKH Wien) and the University Medical Centre Hamburg- Eppendorf took part in the study.
“As a maxillofacial surgery team at the Medical University of Vienna, it was very important and an honour for us to participate in an impressive chapter of innovative intraoperative surgical technology. We were able to use the CARLO technology with success and conviction on patients with skeletal dysgnathias (malposition of jaw) of various degrees of severity, with very satisfactory results for us as surgeons as well as for our patients. The future of the CARLO will be determined by its high precision and the individually designable cutting trajectories. The successful first-in-man study is a dooropener,” said Ass. Prof. Gabriele A. Millesi, President of the International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (IAOMS).
Cyrill Bätscher, CEO of AOT, commented: “The CE certification after years of intensive development is an important milestone. We have demonstrated the enormous potential of contact-free, robot-assisted surgery based on our laser technology for cutting bones. We have thus come a huge step closer to our vision of elevating classic surgical tools to the next level with our latest technology for the benefit of patients.”
“AOT still has big plans,” said Dr Erich Platzer, Chairman of the Board and business angel investor since the beginning: “CARLO is now CE-certified for applications in CMF surgery – our focus is now on medical indications with a larger number of cases, such as neuro and spine surgery.”
For more information, visit: www.aot-swiss.ch
