"UM : Science" [S01-ep14]: From the Hero robot to MedXCell
This week, Frédéric Venail, medical director at Gui de Chauliac University Hospital, gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the operating room during the third cochlear implant procedure assisted by the semi-autonomous Hearo robot. In the second half of the program, Amrin will introduce us to the company MedXcell, and then Agnès Pesenti will give us a preview of the upcoming science bar on the topic “Screens and Violence: A Current Assessment.”
For *A l’UM * la science, we visited the ENT department at Gui de Chauliac University Hospital, where Professor Frédéric Venail, medical director of the “Otology and Otoneurology” unit, agreed to give us full access to the operating room to observe a cochlear implant procedure performed using the semi-autonomous Hearo robot—a first in France!
First of all, what is a cochlear implant? It involves inserting a miniature electrode into the cochlea—that is, the inner ear—to stimulate the cochlea and improve hearing in people with severe to profound hearing loss.
The surgery we observed was performed as part of a clinical research protocol, since it was a surgery assisted by the hearo robot. This device, designed by the Swiss company Cascination and MED-EL, is used to perform the first phase of this cochlear implantation by drilling a tunnel in the inner ear.
The robot is integrated with medical imaging, which makes it possible to calculate the optimal drilling path and reduce the risk of damaging the structures of the inner ear.
The protocol calls for ten trials: we attended the third one, and without giving away too much of our report, it ended in success…
In the second half of the show, we'll stay in the medical field with the return of Amrin, who will be here to introduce us to MedXCell.
To wrap up the program, Agnès Pesenti, head of science outreach, will announce the next Science Bar, which will take place at the Dôme on Thursday, March 17, at 8:30 p.m. On the agenda: “Screens and Violence: A Current Assessment.”
At "UM : Science," here's the lineup—let's get started!
Co-production: Divergence FM / University of Montpellier
Host: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Report: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Segment: Amrin Nagamia and Agnès Pesenti
Director: Bruno Bertrand
Listen to the show “A l’UM la science” on Divergence FM 93.9
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