Sense of touch for surgeons given boost

Engineering students from Leeds University have found a way to give surgeons a hands-on feel in keyhole work.

The hand-held device helps surgeons who like to feel the tissue they are cutting by applying pressure to a user’s hand.

Leeds surgeon David Jayne, who has tested it in the laboratory, said it went a long way to solving one of the main disadvantages of keyhole surgery in the inability of surgeons to feel the structure they operate on. “If this research can be translated into the clinical setting, then it has the potential to offer benefits to surgeons and patients,” he said.