M. Petrus, E. M. Carstea, D. C. A. Dutu, D. C. Dumitras, Optical coherence tomography monitoring of laser ablation processes in ENT tissues, J. Optoelectron. Adv. Mater. 13/7 (2011) 776 – 780.

Title: Optical coherence tomography monitoring of laser ablation processes in ENT tissues

Abstract: Laser ablation surgery diminishes the collateral symptoms and the recovery time. In this study our aims were to characterize tissue destruction after laser-ablation of theENT (Ear, Nose and Throat) soft tissues. We compare the results obtained by Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) method with conventional histology in order to evaluate in vitro the laser injury of the porcine larynges. For irradiation we have used the CO2 laser surgical system. By adequate choice of the laser parameters, we managed to obtain a negligible damaged of the processed tissue due to the thermal effects. Using the heat transfer equation we have obtained a good agreement between the experimental and simulation data for the temperature distribution induced by different laser power in soft tissue.

Key words: laser ablation, Ear Nose Throat (ENT), Optical Coherence Tomography, CO2 laser