A system for ophthalmic surgery on an eye includes: a pulsed laser which produces a treatment beam; an OCT imaging assembly capable of creating a continuous depth profile of the eye; an optical scanning system configured to position a focal zone of the treatment beam to a targeted location in three dimensions in one or more floaters in the posterior pole. The system also includes one or more controllers programmed to automatically scan tissues of the patient's eye with the imaging assembly; identify one or more boundaries of the one or more floaters based at least in part on the image data; iii. identify one or more treatment regions based upon the boundaries; and operate the optical scanning system with the pulsed laser to produce a treatment beam directed in a pattern based on the one or more treatment regions.

The invention relates to a planning device for generating control data for a treatment apparatus, which by means of a laser device generates at least one cut surface in the cornea, and to a treatment apparatus having such a planning device. The invention further relates to a method for generating control data for a treatment apparatus, which by means of a laser device generates at least one cut surface in the cornea, and to a corresponding method for eye surgery. The planning device is thereby provided with calculating means for defining the corneal incision surfaces, wherein the calculation means determines the corneal incisions such that after inserting an implant into the cornea, existing refractive errors are counteracted.

Embodiments of the invention provide methods and systems for analyzing the ophthalmic anatomy of a patient posterior to the cornea. The method may include scanning a focus of a femtosecond laser beam along a path within the patient's eye. A portion of the path may be disposed posterior to the patient's cornea. The method may also include acquiring a first reflectance image and a second reflectance image associated with the focus disposed respectively at a first location of the path and a second location of the path. The method may further include determining the presence or absence of an ophthalmic anatomical feature of the eye based on a comparison between the first reflectance image and the second reflectance image.

A method of implanting a corneal prosthesis in an eye to interconnect host tissue with a corneal graft can include forming an opening in a host tissue of an eye. The method can also include forming a first passageway through the host tissue that extends annularly about an optic axis of the eye. The method can also include forming a second passageway through a corneal graft that extends annularly about an axis of the corneal graft that is substantially collinear with the optic axis of the eye when said corneal graft is positioned in the eye, the first passageway and the second passageway having the same diameter relative to the optic axis. The method can also include forming a gap in the host tissue that extends between a lateral side of the host tissue and the first passageway.

A system for performing ophthalmic surgery includes a robotic positioning system including an end effector. The robotic positioning system is configured to position the end effector with at least five degrees of freedom. An ophthalmic surgical instrument is mounted to the end effector along with an accessory device configured to facilitate performance of an ophthalmic treatment by the ophthalmic surgical instrument. The robotic positioning system may be controlled to enforce anatomical boundaries and implement predefined motion profiles.

A system for ophthalmic surgery on an eye includes: a pulsed laser which produces a treatment beam; an OCT imaging assembly capable of creating a continuous depth profile of the eye; an optical scanning system configured to position a focal zone of the treatment beam to a targeted location in three dimensions in one or more floaters in the posterior pole. The system also includes one or more controllers programmed to automatically scan tissues of the patient's eye with the imaging assembly; identify one or more boundaries of the one or more floaters based at least in part on the image data; iii. identify one or more treatment regions based upon the boundaries; and operate the optical scanning system with the pulsed laser to produce a treatment beam directed in a pattern based on the one or more treatment regions.

A system for forming a corneal implant includes a cutting apparatus, which includes a laser source that emits a laser and optical elements that direct the laser. The system includes a controller implemented with at least one processor and at least one data storage device. The controller generates a sculpting plan for modifying a first shape of a lenticule formed from corneal tissue and achieving a second shape for the lenticule to produce a corneal implant with a refractive profile to reshape a recipient eye. The sculpting plan is determined from measurements relating to the lenticule having the first shape and information relating to a refractive profile for a corneal implant. The controller controls the cutting apparatus to direct, via the one or more optical elements, the laser from the laser source to sculpt the lenticule according to the sculpting plan to produce the corneal implant with the refractive profile.

A system for forming a corneal implant includes a cutting apparatus, which includes a laser source that emits a laser and optical elements that direct the laser. The system includes a controller implemented with at least one processor and at least one data storage device. The controller generates a sculpting plan for modifying a first shape of a lenticule formed from corneal tissue and achieving a second shape for the lenticule to produce a corneal implant with a refractive profile to reshape a recipient eye. The sculpting plan is determined from measurements relating to the lenticule having the first shape and information relating to a refractive profile for a corneal implant. The controller controls the cutting apparatus to direct, via the one or more optical elements, the laser from the laser source to sculpt the lenticule according to the sculpting plan to produce the corneal implant with the refractive profile.

A tissue-augmented corneal inlay surgery technique is disclosed herein. In one embodiment, the surgery method includes the steps of: (i) implanting a corneal inlay into a recipient cornea of an eye of a patient; (ii) applying laser energy to a central portion of the corneal inlay and a portion of stromal tissue of the recipient cornea underneath the corneal inlay so as to modify the refractive power of the eye; (iii) applying a cross-linking solution that includes a photosensitizer to the recipient cornea of the eye of the patient; and (iv) irradiating the corneal inlay and surrounding corneal tissue so as to activate cross-linkers in the corneal inlay and the surrounding corneal tissue. In this embodiment, the central portion of the corneal inlay remains clear for the patient without being obstructed by swollen tissue so that the patient is able to see immediately after the corneal inlay surgery.

One method of isolating the Dua's layer includes separating the Descemet's membrane from the cornea using a hydrodissection technique, removing the Descemet's membrane from the cornea, and separating the Dua's layer from the cornea. A second method of isolating the Dua's layer includes simultaneously separating the Dua's layer from the stroma and separating the Dua's layer from the Descemet's membrane. A third method of isolating the Dua's layer includes dissecting the Dua's layer from the cornea using femtosecond laser. A fourth method of isolating the Dua's layer manually dissecting the Dua's layer from the cornea using forceps. The isolated Dua's layer can be preserved as either a fresh graft for up to 14 days or as a sterile graft for up to two years. Methods of using an isolated Dua's layer include on the ocular surface, mid-stroma, on the posterior cornea, and seeded with endothelial cells for corneal application.