Surgical instrument

A medical procedure instrument comprising:

• an instrument holder including an elongated guide member for receiving an instrument insert that carries at its distal end a medical tool for executing a medical procedure;
• a support for said instrument holder which fixedly holds a distal end of the guide member at a target site internal of a patient;
• said instrument insert being adapted for ready insertion in and withdrawal from said guide member, as the distal end of said guide member is held at said target site by the instrument holder.

A method of remotely controlling an instrument having multiple degrees-of-freedom, comprising the steps of:

• manually inserting the instrument into a patient so as to dispose a distal end thereof at a target site at which a procedure is to be executed;
• supporting an instrument holder that receives said instrument to a support member that is stationary relative to the patient during said procedure so as to maintain the instrument distal end at said target site;
• and remotely controlling said instrument from a user input device to control motion of said instrument distal end in executing the procedure at said target site.

A medical apparatus for exchanging surgical instruments having a selected tool to be positioned at an operative site of a subject, the apparatus comprising:

• a guide tube having an open distal end inserted through an incision of the subject, the guide tube being fixedly positioned relative to the subject such that the distal end of the guide tube is fixedly positioned at the operative site, the guide tube being readily manually insertable through the incision;
• one or more surgical instruments each having a selected tool mounted at a distal end of the instrument;
• wherein the one or more surgical instruments are readily insertable through the fixedly positioned guide tube such that the selected tool of an instrument is disposed through the open distal end of the guide tube at the operative site upon full insertion of the surgical instrument, the guide tube having a first mounting interface and the surgical instruments having a second mounting interface, the first and second mounting interfaces being readily engageable with each other to fixedly mount the surgical instruments within the guide tube upon full insertion of the surgical instrument.