Conventional operating theatres would typical consist of multiple medical devices, each operating in a silo-ed fashion and incapable of communicating with one another. But a team at Tokyo Women's Medical University (TWMU) in Japan is aiming to move away from this norm and equip the operating theatre with integrated medical equipment and robotics in order to enhance surgical precision and improve patient outcomes. The project, dubbed Smart Cyber Operating Theatre (SCOT), is funded by Japan's Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) and led by Yoshihiro Muragaki (pictured right), a professor and neurosurgeon at TWMU's Faculty of Advanced Techno-Surgery. Founded in 2001, the SCOT team started out with six surgeons and five engineers. Designed for brain tumor surgery, one aspect of SCOT comprises the monitoring and display of a patient's condition in real-time during surgery.

Even in the highly technical world of brain surgery, the success of an operation still depends largely on the experience and ability of surgeons. But this may change dramatically with the introduction of "smart" surgical care units, in which everything from computer monitors, robotic arms, microscopes and sensors are connected via the internet to help doctors follow the right course of action. A prototype of an advanced version of such units, the Smart Cyber Operating Theater (SCOT), was showcased Thursday at Tokyo Woman's Medical University in Shinjuku Ward. The project was funded by the state-backed Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED). Development of such units is expected to push forward the advent of so-called Medicine 4.0, a paradigm shift in the medical industry built on advanced information communications technology, said Yoshihiro Muragaki, a brain surgeon and professor at the university who is leading the project.