Patent ID: 8761561
Filing Date: 2014-06-24
Classification: A61B,G02B

Abstract:
1. A medical system comprising: a flexible conduit configured to deliver radiation at a wavelength λ between about 0.7 micrometers to about 20 micrometers from a laser source to a target location within a patient, the conduit comprising: a flexible waveguide extending along a waveguide axis and having a hollow core, the flexible waveguide being configured to guide the radiation at λ through the hollow core along the waveguide axis from an input end to an output end of the flexible waveguide; an actuator mechanically coupled to the flexible conduit configured to bend or straighten a portion of the flexible conduit and to allow an operator to bend or straighten the flexible conduit remotely; and a handpiece attached to the flexible conduit, the handpiece comprising a sleeve extending past the output end that provides a minimum standoff distance between the output end and the target location, the sleeve forming an orifice through which radiation exiting the output end propagates unimpeded to the target location, wherein a distal end of the sleeve has an inner diameter no greater than an inner diameter of a proximal end of the sleeve, and the minimum standoff distance is the same as the distance between the distal end of the sleeve and the output end of the flexible waveguide.