Semi-automated ophthalmic photocoagulation method and apparatus

Abstract

A method of performing therapy on target tissue in a patient's eye of an embodiment uses an ophthalmic treatment system having a light source for producing treatment light and a delivery system for delivering the treatment light to the patient's eye. The method includes steps of: obtaining a sample treatment pattern of spots of the treatment light for projection onto the patient's eye; causing to be displayed the sample treatment pattern; receiving user instruction to add or subtract spots from the sample treatment pattern to produce a new treatment pattern; producing treatment light; and deflecting the treatment light to produce the new treatment pattern for projection onto the patient's eye.

Description

[0001]This application is a division of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11 / 868,387 filed Oct. 5, 2007, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention pertains generally to the ophthalmic treatment of a patient's eye, and more particularly to a machine and method for semi-automated ophthalmic photomedical treatment of a patient's eye.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Presently, conditions such as diabetic retinopathy, vein occlusion and age-related macular degeneration have been treated with photocoagulation induced by visible laser light. While this type of visible laser light treatment may halt the progress of the underlying disease, it can be problematic.[0004]One problem is that some ophthalmic treatments require the application of a large number of laser doses to the retina, which can be tedious and time consuming. Such treatments call for the application of each dose in the form of a laser beam spot applied to the tar...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The patent is about a system for treating eye tissue using a laser. The system includes a computer that creates a treatment plan by adding or subtracting laser spots from a sample pattern. The computer then sends the treatment plan to a scanning device that deflects the laser to create the final pattern for treatment. The technical effect of this invention is that it allows for highly precise treatment of eye tissue with a laser.

Problems solved by technology

While this type of visible laser light treatment may halt the progress of the underlying disease, it can be problematic.

One problem is that some ophthalmic treatments require the application of a large number of laser doses to the retina, which can be tedious and time consuming.

Since some treatments can require hundreds of laser beam spots to treat the target tissues, the overall treatment time can be quite long and require great physician skill to ensure a precise and adequate treatment of the entire target tissue area is accomplished.

However, rapid delivery of multiple beam spots in patterns raises new issues.

For example, the exposure time is limited because of possible eye movement, and even with short exposure times there can be patient eye movement at the moment the physician triggers the application of the treatment pattern that could result in the application of the treatment pattern to non-targeted tissue.

Present systems and techniques for applying patterns of spots have no capability of ensuring the tissue targeted for treatment by the physician is the same as that identified in the pre-treatment images.

Rapid eye movements called saccades cannot be adequately tracked or compensated for by physicians.

Anesthetizing eye muscles using an injection of an anesthetic agent behind the eye can stabilize the eye but carries a risk of perforating the eye, the optic nerve or the blood vessels, is quite painful, and could even cause death.

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