XCath, an early-stage medical device company dedicated to expanding endovascular treatment procedures through smart steerable guidewires and robotic systems, showcased a first-of-its-kind live telerobotic trial for stroke treatment between Abu Dhabi and Korea during Abu Dhabi Global Healthcare Week.

Dr. Vitor Mendes Pereira, Director of Endovascular Research and Innovation at St. Michael’s Hospital, University of Toronto, Canada, successfully performed a mechanical thrombectomy procedure from Abu Dhabi on a silicone “patient” in South Korea. Streamed over a live feed, the surgery was performed within minutes at low latency and used a microcatheter to remove a simulated blood clot in a brain vessel. The neurovascular devices used were Stryker AXS Infinity LS, Trevo Trakb21, and Trevo NXT.

A standard conference ethernet connection was used for communication between the robotic controller in Abu Dhabi and the bedsite unit in South Korea. Latency during the procedure ranged from 153 milliseconds to 170 milliseconds, with an average of 160 milliseconds. Jitter was measured and found to be imperceptible.