Computer-assisted transoral surgery with flexible robotics and navigation technologies: a review of recent progress and research challenges.

This paper reviews the flexible robotic surgery and navigation technologies that are currently available and under research development, particularly for transoral robotic surgery, in both broad and narrow senses. The clinical background, classifications, associated biomedical robotics applications and surgical outcomes are illustrated in this new paradigm of minimally invasive surgery. The state-of-the-art robotic and navigation systems for transoral procedures are reviewed by identifying the key properties and considerations. The use of different materials and actuation methods by the current robotic systems offers various movements for different purposes and their characteristics are compared. The future research trends of the robotic and navigation systems for transoral procedures, in terms of emerging new material, actuation and sensing technologies, are discussed at the end of this article.