Surgical Engineering Laboratory

Our work aims to bridge engineering knowledge with clinical experience to create innovations and improvements in the surgical field. We work closely with the Department of Surgery to design, prototype and test novel surgical devices.

We focus on developing medical devices with commercial potential, and welcome clinical and industry partners seeking to engage with us.

Founded in 2016, the Surgical Engineering Lab is a cross-faculty initiative between the Department of Surgery and Auckland Bioengineering Institute.

Our engineers design, prototype, and validate devices in-house, and conduct pre-clinical and clinical trials for selected projects.

We are particularly interested in collaborations, and in attracting worthwhile ideas from partner clinicians in Auckland and elsewhere.

We also aim to foster education and interaction between clinical staff and students and the engineering field. We run a BMedSci Honours program that places medical students in our projects and offers them the opportunity to work alongside engineers to develop and validate devices and interventions.

Our research

Our research is predominantly focused in the surgical sphere and on the potential for improvements to be made with thoughtful intervention and reliable and efficient development. A few of our current areas of interest are:

  • Gastrointestinal nutrient recycling devices
  • A detector and early warning system for anastomotic leak
  • Improved retractor devices for natural orifice procedures
  • Wound healing augmentation
  • Improved trans-anal tubes following colorectal surgery
  • Detection and neuromodulation for post-operative gut dysfunction.

Members

Primary contact

Greg O’Grady

Professional

Bruce Stokes
Terry Mayne
Armen Gharibans
Paul Roberts

Academic

Greg O’Grady
Anthony Phillips
John A. Windsor
Peng Du

Students

Celia Keane
Anthony Lin
Tim Wang
Tommy Hayes
Chris Vaghese
William Xu
Sameer Bhat