Hand-held robotic device for venipuncture procedures

Over the past decade, the field of medical robotics has seen a rapid surge in research and application. Medical robotics provide enhanced precision, safety, and efficacy for performing a variety of medical procedures that would otherwise be limited by human vision, dexterity, and experience. These devices and technologies have been implemented largely in the surgical robotics field where accurate motion control and improved vision are key for achieving successful results. However, outside of the operating room, medical robotics has seen limited clinical use. One such task where positioning guidance and improved vision is particularly useful is in the field of venipuncture. Venipuncture, the process of gaining venous access either for blood sampling or intravenous therapy, is a ubiquitous and often necessary step in both the treatment and diagnosis of the patient. Oftentimes, however, obtaining venous access, even for routine blood draws, can become timely and difficult for clinicians. Despite recent advancements in robotics and medical imaging, clinical adoption of these technologies for obtaining vascular or venous access have remained limited. Here, we demonstrate the research and development of a robotic hand-held device for assisting clinicians in performing venipuncture procedures safely,quickly, and with high efficacy. The device, named Venibot, utilizes a combination of ultrasound imaging, miniaturized robotics, and machine learning, all to safely and efficiently gain venous access for performing both blood draws and intravenous catheter placements. The device is designed for hand-held use and is manually positioned over the insertion site by a clinician, wherein the device then handles the tasks of both finding the vessel and accurately guiding the attached needle toward the vessel center. In this work, we demonstrate the device’s mechanical design and validate its efficacy and safety in a first ever human pilot study. Furthermore, we demonstrate a venipuncture device capable of performing peripheral catheterizations for fluid delivery and demonstrate its capabilities on tissue mimicking phantom arms of varying levels of difficult venous access. Robotic venipuncture has the potential to greatly reduce venous or vascular access procedure times while simultaneously improving patient comfort and reducing complications due to missed sticks. By facilitating the venipuncture procedure and assuring reliable venous access, clinicians can better focus their efforts on other patient related tasks. Lastly, this technology can also be adapted for a variety of other medical procedures that require accurate needle guidance with medical imaging.Ph.D.Includes bibliographical reference