Guiding glaucoma laser surgery using Fourier-domain optical coherence tomography at 1.3 μm

Glaucoma is a disease of the optic nerve that is usually associated with an increased internal pressure of the eye and can lead to a decreased vision and eventually blindness. It is the second leading cause of blindness worldwide with more than 80 million people affected and approximately 6 million blind. The standard clinical treatment for glaucoma, after unsuccessful administration of eyedrops and other treatments, is performing incisional surgery. However, due to post-surgical complications like scarring and wound healing, this conventional method has a global success rate of only about 60%. In comparison, as femtosecond laser surgery may be performed in volume and is a priori less invasive and less susceptible of causing scarring, glaucoma laser surgery could be a novel technique to supplement the conventional glaucoma surgery. We have been working on the development of a new tool for glaucoma treatment that uses an optimized femtosecond laser source centered at 1.65 mu m wavelength for making the surgery and an imaging system based on optical coherence tomography (OCT) for guiding the laser surgery. In this proceeding, we present the results obtained so far on the development and utilization of Fourier-domain OCT imaging system working at 1.3 mu m center wavelength for guiding the laser incision. Cross-sectional OCT image of pathological human cornea showing the Schlemm's canal, where the surgery is intended to be done, is presented. By coupling OCT imaging system with the laser incision system, we also demonstrate real-time imaging of femtosecond laser incision of cornea.