Methods are disclosed for operating a laser. Such methods may comprise operating the laser to emit electromagnetic energy in an infrared range in pulses with a pulse duration of greater than 1 ns. The wavelength of infrared electromagnetic energy may be in a range of about 2.6 to about 3.3 or about 1.8 to about 2.1. The pulses may have a pulse energy selected to deliver an energy density of 2,500 J/cm.sup.3 or greater. The laser electromagnetic energy may be delivered for a medical application, such as cataract surgery to break apart a cataractous lens by photodisruption.

An ophthalmic device for treating an eye includes a laser source, a scanner system and an application head with a focusing optic and a patient interface for docking the application head onto the eye. Moreover, the ophthalmic device includes a measurement system for optically capturing eye structures when the application head is docked to the eye and a circuit which is configured to determine reference structures of the eye, which are arranged in ring-shaped fashion about the center axis of the anterior chamber of the eye, from the captured eye structures and to arrange a defined three-dimensional treatment model with respect to these reference structures in order to process a three-dimensional treatment pattern in accordance with the arranged three-dimensional treatment model in the eye.

Systems and methods for improving vision of a subject implanted with an intraocular lens (IOL). In some embodiments, a method of treating an ocular disease of a subject having an implanted intraocular lens (IOL) includes determining visual needs of a subject that are associated with an ocular disease of the subject determining a pattern of a plurality of pulses of radiation to apply, by refractive index writing, and applying the plurality of pulses of radiation to the one or more selected areas of the IOL.

A method is disclosed for providing control data for an eye surgical laser of a treatment apparatus for the removal of tissue from a human or animal cornea. The method includes ascertaining a temperature distribution expected in the cornea per laser pulse, and determining, by using a temperature model of the cornea, a laser pulse sequence of a preset laser pulse distribution for removing the tissue. A respective laser pulse position in the cornea is preset by the laser pulse distribution and sequence. A temperature profile of the cornea is calculated by means of cumulated temperature distributions of the laser pulses in the temperature model and a difference profile to a preset limit temperature profile is determined. An order of the laser pulses is ascertained depending on the difference profile for determining the laser pulse sequence, and providing control data for controlling the laser pulse sequence for removing tissue.

Described herein is a device for performing scleral depression. The device can include a ring and one or more arms protruding from the ring. The ring can define an opening over an eye and include a handle protruding away from the one or more arms. The opening can have a diameter that is at least 6 to 8 millimeters (mm) long. The one or more arms can be configured to be disposed over a globe of the eye for controllable depression of a sclera of the eye. Uniform pressure can be applied to the sclera by depression features at a distal end of each of the one or more arms.

A system for laser ophthalmic surgery includes: a single laser source, under the operative control of a controller, configured to alternatively deliver a first treatment laser beam and a second treatment laser beam. The first treatment laser beam has a pulse energy of 10 to 500 J. The second pulsed laser beam has a second pulse energy of about 0.1 to 10 J, lower than the first treatment laser beam. An optical system focuses the first treatment laser beam to a first focal spot and directs the first focal spot in a first treatment pattern into a first intraocular target. The optical system also focuses the second treatment laser beam to a second focal spot and direct the second focal spot in a second treatment pattern into a second intraocular target. The first intraocular target and second intraocular target are different.

An ophthalmic laser treatment device includes a control unit that executes a guide display step of controlling a display unit to display a guide in accordance with a progress of an irradiation plan. The guide is used to align a target position on a tissue of a patient's eye with a next irradiation spot of a plurality of irradiation spots at which treatment laser light is scheduled to be emitted next time. The control unit further executes an irradiation position movement step of moving an irradiation position of the treatment laser light and an aiming light by controlling an irradiation position moving unit.

A surgical system includes: (1) an imaging device configured to acquire imaging data of a surgical site; (2) a surgical manipulator configured to hold a surgical tool; and (3) a controller connected to the imaging device and the surgical manipulator, wherein the controller is configured to receive the imaging data from the imaging device and derive, from the imaging data, an insertion trajectory for the surgical tool through an incision at the surgical site.

A system (20) includes a radiation source (48) and a controller (44). The controller is configured to define a treatment zone (88) on a capsule (86) of an eye (25) of a subject (22), and to form an opening (96) in the capsule, subsequently to defining the treatment zone, by irradiating multiple target regions (94) within the treatment zone in an iterative process that includes, during each one of multiple iterations of the process, acquiring an image (98) of at least part of the capsule, designating one of the target regions based on the acquired image, and causing the radiation source to irradiate the designated target region. Other embodiments are also described.

An apparatus for aiding the removal of cataracts in which an optical fiber delivers sufficient optical energy of the correct wavelength, pulse duration to achieve controlled non-thermal and non-acoustic dissolution of hard cataract tissue.