Medical Applications of Lasers

OCT 01, 1988

Lasers can reshape corneas, pulverize gallstones, ream arteries and kill tumors. Their increasing use in medicine is spurred by new technology and better understanding of the interaction of laser light with living tissue.

DOI: 10.1063/1.881158

Thomas F. Deutsch

The use of lasers in medicine began soon after the first ruby laser was invented in 1960. In recent years the number and variety of applications of lasers to biology and medicine has been increasing rapidly. I will review some of these applications, with emphasis on the physical mechanisms and the technology. After an overview of the various types of laser‐tissue interactions, I give some examples of how these interactions are exploited in medicine.

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More about the authors

Thomas F. Deutsch, Wellmon Laboratory, Massachusetts.