<title>Erbium laser photoablation of the cornea</title>

Abstract

In the mid IR region, where water acts as the main chromophore in soft tissue, pulsed erbium lasers emit radiation with sufficient energy for photoablative tissue processing. In this study, the ablation characteristics of these lasers were analyzed in order to evaluate their potential for clinical application in corneal and intraocular surgery. Histopathological examination of thermal side-effects was performed on porcine corneas. Ablation rates were investigated by on-line depth profiling in free-running and in q-switched mode. Structure and intensity of laser induced acoustic transients were analyzed by piezo-electric PVDF-films.