ES8800834A3 - Ablation apparatus for operating on the surface of the cornea of a patient's eye, and method for using it - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to the use of an exploration laser characterised by ultraviolet radiation to achieve the controlled ablative photodecomposition of one or more selected regions of a cornea. The irradiated flow density and the exposure time are controlled in order to achieve the desired depth of ablation, which comprises a local cutting operation, and the explorative action is coordinated to achieve the desired final surface change in the cornea. The exploration can be controlled in order to change the frontal surface of the cornea, from a greater to a lesser spherical curvature, or from a lesser to a greater spherical curvature, thus achieving a reduction in a condition of myopia or hypermetropia without making use of a contact lens technique or an auxiliary correcting lens of another type, as the cornea is converted into the correcting lens. The exploration can also be controlled in order to reduce astigmatism and to carry out the precise incisions necessary in a radial keratotomy. In addition to this, the exploration can be controlled with a view to removing corneal tissue uniformly from a controlled area of the cornea in an accurate way in order to accommodate a corneal transplant precisely.