Abstract: A noncontact laser microsurgical apparatus and method for marking a cornea of a patient's or donor's eye in transplanting surgery or keratoplasty, and in incising or excising the corneal tissue in keratotomy, and for tissue welding and for thermokeratoplasty. The noncontact laser microsurgical apparatus comprises a laser source and a projection optical system for converting laser beams emitted from the laser source into coaxially distributed beam spots on the cornea. The apparatus further includes a multiple-facet prismatic axicon lens system movably mounted for varying the distribution of the beam spots on the cornea. In a further embodiment of the method of the present invention, an adjustable mask pattern is inserted in the optical path of the laser source to selectively block certain portions of the laser beams to thereby impinge only selected areas of the cornea.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
November 6, 1991
Date of Patent:
January 25, 1994
Assignee:
University of Miami, School of Medicine, Dept. of Ophthalmology
Inventors:
Jean-Marie Parel, Takashi Yokokura, Katsuhiko Kobayashi
Abstract: A noncontact laser microsurgical apparatus and method for marking a cornea of a patient's or donor's eye in transplanting surgery or keratoplasty, and in incising or excising the corneal tissue in keratotomy, and for tissue welding and for thermokeratoplasty. The noncontact laser microsurgical apparatus comprises a laser source and a projection optical system for converting laser beams emitted from the laser source into coaxially distributed beam spots on the cornea. The apparatus further includes a multiple-facet prismatic axicon lens system movably mounted for varying the distribution of the beam spots on the cornea. In a further embodiment of the method of the present invention, an adjustable mask pattern is inserted in the optical path of the laser source to selectively block certain portions of the laser beams to thereby impinge only selected areas of the cornea.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
June 7, 1989
Date of Patent:
October 6, 1992
Assignee:
University of Miami, School of Medicine, Dept. of Ophthalmology
Inventors:
Jean-Marie Parel, Takashi Yokokura, Katsuhiko Kobayashi