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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2015 Sep 8.
Published in final edited form as: Am J Robot Surg. 2014 Jun;1(1):4–11. doi: 10.1166/ajrs.2014.1010

Table I.

Overview of the existing and emerging nanorobotic applications across specialties of medicine.

Specialty Brief Description Reference
Microbiology Use of magnetotactic bacteria to transport and navigate nanorobots 12, 13, 15
Hematology Circulating “respirocyte” nanorobots to deliver oxygen and return remove waste products from periphery 22
Hematology Circulating “clottocyte “nanorobot with hemostatic functions 26
Hematology Phagocytic “microbivores” with customizable antigen binding sites for targeting of pathogens 28
Dentistry Dental anesthesia and sensitive teeth through nanorobot penetrating dentinal tubules for occlusion or administration of targeted analgesic 31, 32, 35, 36
Dentistry Enhancement of the success rate of root canal procedures by providing visualization of root 33
Dentistry Improved daily dental hygiene and teeth cosmetics by replacement of enamel layers 32
Neurosurgery Single axon manipulation and transection with use nanoknife 42, 43
Neurosurgery Circulating nanorobot for the monitoring of intracranial aneurysm development and progression 48
Oncology Screening nanorobot circulating and monitoring for detection of neoplasia 54
Oncology Direct drug delivery to cancerous tissue to limit systemic toxicity and increase effectiveness 57
Oncology Mapping of margins of tumor to improve resection during surgery 58, 59
Vascular Screening for atherosclerosis, cancer, aneurysms, and more 62-64
Vascular Localization of bleeding site for assisting embolization 68