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Laser ablation process and apparatus

  • US 4,785,806 A
  • Filed: 01/08/1987
  • Issued: 11/22/1988
  • Est. Priority Date: 01/08/1987
  • Status: Expired due to Fees
First Claim
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1. Apparatus for ablating atherosclerotic tissue in blood vessels, comprising:

  • a source of low power ultraviolet laser energy having a wavelength outside the band of visible wavelengths,fiberoptic means for directing said low power laser energy at a section of tissue of said blood vessel to cause said section to fluoresce,spectrum analyzing means for determining whether a laser induced fluorescence frequency spectrum is representative of normal or atherosclerotic tissue,a source of high power laser energy for producing pluses, the pulse duration and energy per unit area of which are selected to cause ablation without charring of tissue that would obscure the fluorescence pattern of the tissue,fiber optic means for directing the output of said high power ultraviolet laser at said section of tissue, andmeans responsive to said spectrum analyzing means for enabling atherosclerotic tissue to be progressively ablated by said high power laser energy while said tissue is caused to fluoresce by said low power ultraviolet laser until said spectrum analyzing means indicates that the fluorescence pattern of said tissue is no longer indicative of atherosclerotic tissue thereby to ablate said atherosclerotic tissue only.

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