Postgraduate medical journal
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Urology has increasingly become a technology-driven specialty. The advent of robotic surgical systems in the past 10 years has led to urologists becoming the world leaders in the use of such technology. ⋯ From the earliest uses of robots for transurethral resection of the prostate, to robotic devices for manipulating laparoscopes and to the current crop of master-slave devices for robotic-assisted laparoscopic surgery, the evolution of robotics in the urology operating theatre is presented. Future possibilities, including the prospects for nanotechnology in urology, are awaited.