How Lasers are Used in Modern Surgeries
When it comes to modern surgeries, lasers are an indispensable tool. They help doctors perform the most intricate of surgeries with relative ease.
A laser is a device that emits light of a single color which gets absorbed by the material used on the surgery table on only specific wavelengths, heating the area. It allows for high accuracy compared to other tools that can heat or cut anything no matter what material it is.
Lasers need regular and proper maintenance to work effectively; that is why you need to engage experts from Sentient Lasers. They have the experience to handle any of your laser-related needs.
Three primary components are used in lasers during surgery:
- The light source which generates the laser beam
- Optical fibers that carry the laser beam to where it is needed
- A control system for aiming and adjusting the laser.
Lasers are primarily used for cutting through tissues, although they can also be used to cauterize blood vessels to stop bleeding and vaporize small amounts of tissue.
Laser surgery is also exact, so the body has low chances of rejecting any transplants or implants after surgery and less scaring than previous methods such as cutting or cauterizing.
To better understand how lasers are used during surgery, consider a patient that needs a new hip. The surgeon would first make a small incision to insert a camera that emits near-infrared light into the body in this surgery.
Below find detailed information on how lasers are used in modern surgeries:
- Camera
A camera is inserted through the incision using a thin wire and guides the surgeon while performing surgery. The camera is inserted to minimize bodily damage and help, especially in complex cases such as brain surgeries.
- Image-guided surgery
This technique makes it possible for surgeons to look at three-dimensional pictures of the tissue, allowing them to use the camera to guide them. It makes surgery more precise because they can look at any angle on a monitor instead of through the small hole in the skin.
- Hand-held lasers
A hand-held laser is an invaluable tool for several surgeries that are not on or around vital organs because it does not burn the tissues while cauterizing the area being worked on.
- Heat-based cutting tools
These devices, such as a chisel or drill, are used to remove parts of bones and tissues that cannot be cut through with lasers.
- Focused imaging systems
Focused imaging is a system that uses near-infrared light to provide surgeons with images of the different tissues inside a patient.
- Fluorescence imaging systems
The primary function of this system is to provide accurate results regarding the removal of organs and tumors and removing unwanted tissue from the body. It makes it possible for doctors to see all that they will have removed from a patient just before doing so, allowing them to remove only the necessary tissues.
Final Thoughts
Lasers are an essential part of modern surgery because they allow doctors to operate with more precision. They feature different light wavelengths that can cut, cauterize or vaporize tissues, making surgeries safer and more effective.