Removal of tissue
OwnerAzis Y. Anisinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
To reduce damage to surrounding tissue while fragmenting some tissue such as for example not damaging the capsular wall while removing the lens during cataract removal surgery or not damaging artery or vein walls during bypass surgery while freeing the artery or vein to be transplanted, an incision is made for the insertion of surface--discriminating, rotating, fragmenting handpiece. The surface--discriminating fragmenting handpiece fragments and permits aspiration of the tissue without damaging the surrounding wall by fragmenting surfaces of higher inertia material but moving at a rate of speed and having openings between them of such a size that the more integrated lower mass, more flexible and smoother tissue is moved away from the fragmenting zone and the higher mass, lower flexibility or rougher tissue is fragmented.
Claims5
A method comprising the steps of:
- inserting a surface discriminating fragmenting tip having at least one surface and a longitudinal axis through an opening in the eye into the lens of an eye having a cataract and a capsular wall, which at least one surface is inwardly curved toward the longitudinal axis to form a blunt end portion of the surface discriminating framenting tip and has at least one fragmenting edge extending generally in the same direction as the longitudinal axis;
- moving the at least one fragmenting edge at a velocity faster than the fragmenting velocity with respect to tissue of a cataract and lower than the fragmenting velocity of the capsular wall wherein the at least one fragmenting edge contacts a lens and a capsular wall of the capsular sac without being constrained by opposed shear forces of an edge of the at least one surface and another portion of the surface discriminating tip;
- positioning the surface discriminating fragmenting tip to impact said tissue of the cataract while it is moving at a velocity higher than the fragmenting velocity with respect to the capsular wall and at an angle to the cataract;
- whereby the cataract is fragmented but not the capsular wall;
- aspirating the fragmented tissue;
- and
- introducing irrigating fluid into the capsular sac, wherein the at least one fragmenting edge causes sufficient cavitation to fragment tissue.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.