Method of treating veins
First Claim
1. A method of treating an elongated blood vessel located in the tissue under the surface of the skin comprising the steps of:
- irradiating a spot on the surface of the skin with laser light having a diameter less than 0.2 mm and a fluence and power sufficient to ablate a hole in the tissue having a depth which reaches the vessel causing the vessel to bleed and coagulate; and
repeating the irradiating step at multiple spots on the skin along the length of the vessel to be treated.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method of treating vascular lesions is disclosed which includes using a focused beam from a high energy, carbon dioxide laser to irradiate a spot on the surface of the skin over the vessel to be treated. The carbon dioxide output wavelength is highly absorbed by the tissue. By using short, high energy pulses, a small volume of skin can be vaporized or ablated with each pulse with little thermal damage beyond the ablated region. Using multiple pulses, a small channel is drilled in the skin until the vessel is reached. The laser energy absorbed by the blood in the vessel will cause it to coagulate and collapse. This procedure is then repeated at multiple sites along the length of the vessel so that it will collapse and no longer carry any blood.
170 Citations
7 Claims
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1. A method of treating an elongated blood vessel located in the tissue under the surface of the skin comprising the steps of:
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irradiating a spot on the surface of the skin with laser light having a diameter less than 0.2 mm and a fluence and power sufficient to ablate a hole in the tissue having a depth which reaches the vessel causing the vessel to bleed and coagulate; and repeating the irradiating step at multiple spots on the skin along the length of the vessel to be treated. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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Specification