Integrated surgical microscope and wavefront sensor

• US 7,883,505 B2
• Filed: 04/20/2005
• Issued: 02/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/20/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alcon Incorporated
• Original Assignee: WaveTec Vision Systems, Inc. (Alcon Incorporated)
• Inventors: Durrie, Daniel S., Van Heugten, Anthony Y.
• Primary Examiner(s): Johnson, III; Henry M
• Assistant Examiner(s): LIPITZ, JEFFREY BRIAN
• Application Number:
  US11/110,653
• Publication Number:
  US 20050243276A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,120 Days
• Field of Search: 606 1- 4, 250/201.9, 250/234, 351/206, 351/221
• US Class Current: 606/4
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 3/1015 for wavefront analysis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 3/103 for determining refraction, e.g. refractometers, skiascopes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 3/13 Ophthalmic microscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/20 Surgical microscopes characterised by non-optical aspects
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/36 Image-producing devices or illumination devices not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2009/00842 Permanent Structural Change [PSC] in index of refraction; Limit between ablation and plasma ignition
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2009/00848 based on wavefront
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2009/00853 Laser thermal keratoplasty or radial keratotomy
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2009/00868 Ciliary muscles or trabecular meshwork
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2009/00872 Cornea
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2009/00887 Cataract
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/007 Methods or devices for eye surgery
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/00736 Instruments for removal of intra-ocular material or intra-ocular injection, e.g. cataract instruments A61F9/008 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/008 using laser
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/0081 Transplantation
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/00827 Refractive correction, e.g. lenticle
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/00831 Transplantation
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/00834 Inlays; Onlays; Intraocular lenses [IOL]
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/013 Instruments for compensation of ocular refraction A61F9/008 takes precedence; Instruments for use in cornea removal, for reshaping or performing incisions in the cornea

Abstract

A wavefront sensor is integrated with a surgical microscope for allowing a doctor to make repeated wavefront measurements of a patient'"'"'s eye while the patient remains on an operating table in the surgical position. The device includes a wavefront sensor optically aligned with a surgical microscope such that their fields of view at least partially overlap. The inclusion of lightweight, compact diffractive optical components in the wavefront sensor allows the integrated device to be supported on a balancing mechanism above a patient'"'"'s head during a surgical procedure. As a result, the need to reposition the device and/or the patient between measuring optical properties of the eye and performing surgical procedures on the eye is eliminated. Many surgical procedures may be improved or enhanced using the integrated device, including but not limited to cataract surgery, Conductive Keratoplasty, Lasik surgery, and corneal corrective surgery.

Claims

1. A surgical device for measuring properties of an eye, comprising:

a surgical microscope providing a stereoscopic first field of view, the surgical microscope comprising a first housing and an objective lens; and

a wavefront sensor for performing refractive measurements of the eye, the wavefront sensor providing a second field of view and comprising;

a different second housing, the second housing comprising an optical passageway therethrough, and

a combining optical element located in the second housing along the optical passageway, wherein the combining optical element is positioned to receive light that reflects from the eye and to send a first portion of the light reflected from the eye outside the second housing to the surgical microscope via the optical passageway through the second housing, and to send a second portion of the light reflected from the eye to one or more optical components within the second housing,

wherein the second field of view of the wavefront sensor is optically aligned with the first field of view of the surgical microscope,

wherein the surgical microscope and the wavefront sensor do not share a lens, and

wherein the wavefront sensor and the surgical microscope are not integrated with a laser for performing refractive correction on the eye.

2. The surgical device of claim 1, wherein the combining optical element comprises a combiner mirror or a beam splitter.

3. The surgical device of claim 1, wherein the combining optical element is configured to send light in the visible spectrum to the surgical microscope and to send light in the infrared spectrum to the one or more optical components within the second housing.

4. The surgical device of claim 1, wherein the housing of the wavefront sensor is adapted to attach to the housing of the surgical microscope.

5. The surgical device of claim 4, wherein the housing of the wavefront sensor comprises a fastener for removably attaching to the housing of the surgical microscope.

6. The surgical device of claim 1, wherein the wavefront sensor comprises one or more diffractive optical elements.

7. The surgical device of claim 6, wherein the one or more diffractive optical elements comprise a first grating and a second grating separated by an integer multiple of a Talbot distance, the first and second gratings being rotated with respect to one another.

8. The surgical device of claim 1, wherein the surgical microscope comprises a balancing mechanism for suspending the surgical device above the eye.

9. The surgical device of claim 1, wherein the surgical microscope comprises binocular optics.