Ultrashort pulse laser ossicular ablation and stapedotomy in cadaveric bone.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the ablation of ossicular tissue using a 1,053 nm Ti:Sapphire chirped pulse amplifier laser system configured to deliver ultrashort pulses of 350 femtoseconds (fs) (3.5x10(-13) seconds) in cadaver temporal bone.


METHODS
Ablation of the formalin-fixed incus and stapes was performed using an ultrashort pulse laser (USPL) (0.4 mm beam diameter, pulse fluence of 2.0 J/cm2, and pulse repetition rate of 10 Hz). The ablation rate was measured using optical micrometry, and crater surface morphology examined using scanning electron microscopy.


RESULTS
The laser produced precise bone ablation at a rate of 1.26 microm/pulse, with almost no evidence of thermal damage, and very little evidence of photomechanical injury.


CONCLUSIONS
Ultrashort pulse lasers may provide a useful clinical tool for otologic and skull base surgery, where precise hard tissue ablation is required adjacent to critical structures.
Armstrong
William B
WB
Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of California, Irvine, Orange, CA 92868, USA.
Neev
Joseph A
JA
Da Silva
Luiz B
LB
Rubenchik
Alexander M
AM
Stuart
Brent C
BC
D002102:Cadaver; D004429:Ear Ossicles / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D053685:Laser Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D013201:Stapes Surgery / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D013997:Time Factors