A catheter system for imparting pressure to induce fractures at a treatment site within or adjacent a blood vessel wall includes a catheter, a fortified balloon inflation fluid and a first light guide. The catheter includes an elongate shaft and a balloon that is coupled to the elongate shaft. The balloon has a balloon wall and can expand to a first expanded configuration to anchor the catheter in position relative. The fortified balloon inflation fluid can expand the balloon to the first expanded configuration. The fortified balloon inflation fluid includes a base inflation fluid and a fortification component. The fortification component reduces a threshold for inducing plasma formation in the fortified balloon inflation fluid compared to the base inflation fluid. The fortification component can include at least one of carbon and iron. The first light guide is disposed along the elongate shaft and is positioned at least partially within the balloon. The first light guide is in optical communication with a light source and the fortified balloon inflation fluid. The light source provides sub-millisecond pulses of a light to the first light guide so that plasma formation and rapid bubble formation occur in the fortified balloon inflation fluid, thereby imparting pressure waves upon the treatment site.

A catheter system includes a catheter having an elongate shaft, a balloon and a light guide. The balloon expands from a collapsed configuration to a first expanded configuration. The light guide is disposed along the elongate shaft and is in optical communication with a light source and a balloon fluid. A first portion of the light guide extends into a recess defined by the elongate shaft. A protection structure is disposed within the recess and is in contact with the first portion of the light guide. The light source provides pulses of light to the balloon fluid, thereby initiating plasma formation and rapid bubble formation within the balloon, thereby imparting pressure waves upon a treatment site. The protection structure can provide structural protection from the pressure waves to the first portion of the light guide.

A catheter system for pressure wave and inertial impulse generation for intravascular lesion disruption at a treatment site includes a catheter including an elongate shaft and balloon coupled to the elongate shaft. The catheter system includes a light guide disposed along the elongate shaft and at least partially within the balloon, where the light guide is in optical communication with a light source and a balloon fluid. The catheter can include a first focusing element located at a distal portion of the light guide and in optical communication with the light source. The first focusing element can direct light from within the light guide to a first location at a first distance away from the distal portion of the light guide to initiate plasma formation in the balloon fluid away from the distal portion and to cause rapid bubble formation, thereby imparting pressure waves at the treatment site.

A catheter system for pressure wave and inertial impulse generation for intravascular lesion disruption includes a balloon coupled to an elongate shaft, and a first and second light guide disposed along the elongate shaft. The first and second light guides each include a diverting feature in optical communication with at least one light window to direct light to exit each light guide toward a side surface portion thereof and toward the balloon. A method includes expanding the balloon from a collapsed configuration to a first expanded configuration, and activating a light source in optical communication with each light guide to provide sub-millisecond pulses of light to the diverting features, thereby inducing plasma formation in a balloon fluid, causing rapid bubble formation, and imparting pressure waves upon the treatment site.

A photoacoustic catheter adapted for placement within a blood vessel having a vessel wall includes an elongate shaft, a balloon and a photoacoustic transducer. The elongate shaft can extend from a proximal region to a distal region. The elongate shaft can include a light guide that is configured to be placed in optical communication with a light source. The balloon is coupled to the elongate shaft, and can be configured to expand from a collapsed configuration suitable for advancing the photoacoustic catheter through a patient's vasculature to a first expanded configuration suitable for anchoring the photoacoustic catheter in position relative to a treatment site. The photoacoustic transducer can be disposed on a surface of the balloon and in optical communication with the light guide. The photoacoustic transducer can include a light-absorbing material and a thermal expansion material.

In one embodiment, the disclosure is directed to an integrated apparatus for delivering energy to a tissue. The integrated apparatus included a housing having a distal end and a tubular structure located within the housing forming a first annulus between the tubular structure and the housing. The tubular structure is configured to accept an energy delivery component and is configured to form a second annulus between the tubular structure and the energy delivery component. The first annulus and the second annulus are configured to communicate with each other proximate to the distal end of the housing.

Multi-fiber laser probes utilize relative motion of fibers and other laser probe elements to preserve small-gauge compatibility while providing for multi-spot beam deliver, or to provide for the selectively delivery of single-spot or multi-spot beam patterns. An example probe includes fibers having distal ends that are movable as a group onto a distal ramp element affixed to a distal end of a cannula, so that the distal ends of the fibers can be moved between a retracted position, in which the distal ends of the fibers are within the cannula or ramp element, and an extended position, in which distal ends of the fibers are guided by grooves or channels of the ramp so as to extend at least partially through external openings in the distal end of the laser probe and so as to be pointed angularly away from a longitudinal axis of the cannula.

Systems and method relate to administering phototherapy. A device includes a hollow structure having at least a first open end. The hollow structure includes a rotatable member, one or more coherent light generators, and, for each coherent light generator, one or more lenses or mirrors optically connected to the coherent light generator and configured to alter at least one aspect of a beam of coherent light. The device further includes a processing circuit including a processor and a memory storing instructions. The instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to accept an input from an operator and generate one or more beams of coherent light according to a plurality of settings configured to produce a therapeutic effect at a targeted treatment site. Additionally, the rotatable member is configured to be rotated to direct the one or more beams of coherent light to the targeted treatment site.

The present disclosure relates generally to devices, methods and systems for laser generators, and more specifically, to laser generators having an optical assembly, which allows fiber optic catheters to couple to laser generators while delivering laser beams.

An apparatus for applying energy to an object includes an arrangement of energy emitting elements for outputting energy to the object. At least some of the energy emitting elements are configured to emit energy to the object independently from each other.