Apparatus and method for forming incisions in ocular tissue

#This disclosure is generally directed to surgical devices. More specifically, this disclosure relates to an apparatus and method for forming incisions in ocular tissue.

#Various surgical procedures may be performed on a patient's eye to reduce or correct any number of vision problems. For example, surgical procedures are often performed to treat presbyopia, myopia, hyperopia, elevated intraocular pressure, ocular hypertension, and glaucoma.

#As a particular example, presbyopia can often be treated by implanting scleral prostheses within the scleral tissue of the patient's eye as described in various patent documents incorporated by reference above. For each scleral prosthesis, an incision can be made in the sclera and extended under the surface of the sclera to form a scleral tunnel, and the scleral prosthesis can be placed within the tunnel. One or multiple scleral prostheses may be implanted in a patient's eye to partially or completely eliminate presbyopia in the patient's eye. The same or similar technique can also be used to treat glaucoma, ocular hypertension, elevated intraocular pressure, or other eye disorders.

#For a more complete understanding of this disclosure, reference is now made to the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

#FIG. 1 illustrates an example surgical tool for making incisions in ocular tissue in accordance with this disclosure;

#FIG. 2 illustrates example components within the surgical tool of FIG. 1 in accordance with this disclosure;

#FIGS. 1 through 6, discussed below, and the various embodiments used to describe the principles of the present invention in this patent document are by way of illustration only and should not be construed in any way to limit the scope of the invention. Those skilled in the art will understand that the principles of the invention may be implemented in any type of suitably arranged device or system.

#FIG. 1 illustrates an example surgical tool 100 for making incisions in ocular tissue in accordance with this disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1, the surgical tool 100 includes a housing 102 and a surgical blade assembly 104. The housing 102 contains various components that cause rotation of a surgical blade in the surgical blade assembly 104. Example components within the housing 102 are shown in FIG. 2, which is described below. The housing 102 includes any suitable structure containing and supporting other components of the surgical tool 100. The housing 102 could have any suitable size and shape and be formed from any suitable material(s), such as plastic.

#The surgical blade assembly 104 includes a surgical blade that is rotated to physically form an incision in the ocular tissue of a patient's eye. The surgical blade assembly 104 can also include other structures facilitating rotation of the surgical blade, such as a drive gear or other structure that can be rotated by other components within the housing 102. The surgical blade assembly 104 includes any suitable structure having a blade that forms an incision in ocular tissue.