Tissue differentiation using laser-induced shock waves by detection of acoustic transients through an optical wave-guide

摘要

Abstract: Some physical phenomena which occur during the fragmentation of calculi by laser induced optical break down are presented. With in vitro experiments it could be shown that the energy of the laser induced plasma and of the cavitation bubble (induced by the plasma) depends by the nature of the tissue. The laser induced plasma and the cavitation bubble generate shock waves. These sound waves are transferred via the laser fiber and detected with a piezo- electrical sensor at the proximal end. The acoustic signal contains information on the potential energy of the bubble, which depends on the energy of the plasma. The possibility of measuring the energy dependent acoustic transients allows to distinguish between hard and soft tissue and by this it is suitable for controlling the laser lithotripsy process. The transmission of acoustic transients through silica glass fibers is investigated by theoretical calculations. It shows the feasibility of silica glass fibers as an acoustic wave guide.!19