Samuel Tanenbaum

US Patent:

59794542, Nov 9, 1999

Filed:

Jun 6, 1997

Appl. No.:

8/870467

Inventors:

Bahman Anvari - Irvine CA
Samuel B. Tanenbaum - Irvine CA
Thomas E. Milner - Irvine CA
J. Stuart Nelson - Laguna Niguel CA

Assignee:

The Regents of the University of California - Oakland CA

International Classification:

A61N 506

US Classification:

128898

Abstract:

Successful laser treatment of hemangiomas requires selective photocoagulation of subsurface targeted blood vessels without thermal damage to the overlying epidermis. An apparatus for in vivo exposure of laser radiation from a continuous Nd:YAG laser at 1064 nm delivers repetitive cryogen spurts, each having a duration of the order of milliseconds during continuous laser irradiation. Control of the cryogen spray cooling is achieved through monitoring of the radiometric surface temperature of the tissue site and either controlling the repetition rate of the cryogen spurts according to temperature or according to a threshold temperature of the irradiated surface and/or repetition rate of the cryogen spurts according to power density and the duration of continuous irradiation.