• biorobotics
• distraction enterogenesis
• implantable robotics

The following thesis focuses on translational research, which combines the emergent and exciting world of robotic implants with tissue regeneration engineering. The ultimate goal is the treatment of a devastating disease called Short Bowel Syndrome (SBS) in paediatrics patients. The SBS is associated with the loss of a big portion of bowel and the consequential inability of the patient to absorb enough nutrients.
While existing surgical procedures and intestinal transplants lead to several complications, the solution proposed here involves the in-vivo regeneration of intestinal tissue through mechanotransduction.
This thesis introduces a robotic implant for inducing bowel growth, without compromising the internal flow, by applying controlled distraction forces extraluminally. With the ultimate goal of developing a device sized for paediatric patients, a scalable design is presented, with two sets of specifications; one for humans and one for piglets.
A prototype sized for 20 kg pigs is built and assessed through benchtop experiments. The final prototype, controllable by a laptop, has a cylindrical body of 21x2.5 cm and is encapsulated in two layers of biocompatible materials. In order to generate an animal model of the paediatric SBS, six pigs of 20 kg underwent 75-80% short bowel resection. Three of these animals received the implants, while the other three worked as a control group. One animal from the group that received the implant successfully grew 87 mm of bowel. The remaining two had to be prematurely euthanised. While the robot successfully overcame the design challenges of the medical implant, the interface with the biological tissue needs to be further investigated.