Medical applications of mid-IR lasers. Problems and prospects

Any application of lasers in medicine is based on a compromise between the efficiency with which the laser radiation interacts with biological tissue and the concomitant collateral effects. Correspondingly, parameters minimizing undesirable damage to tissue must be determined. The development of a new generation of solid-state lasers tunable over a wide range in the mid-IR range of the spectrum with parametric generation of light and a combination of high radiation intensity and relatively low pulse energy at high repetition frequency opens up new possibilities for less-invasive, high-precision, laser surgery, first and foremost, in ophthamology and neuro-and cardiosurgery. (C) 2010 Optical Society of America.