Patent ID: 8357146

Claim:
A device for the percutaneous treatment of cellulite and adipose tissue with laser energy, the device comprising: a hollow cannula having a tip at a distal end for placement underneath the dermis of a patient, the hollow cannula further having a suction port and a fiber access port at a proximal end, the suction port for coupling to an outside suction source, the hollow cannula further having a forward facing opening at the distal end, the hollow cannula further having a plurality of suction holes spaced closer to the proximal end thereby separated from the forward facing opening located at the distal end; an optical fiber laser delivery device disposed within the hollow cannula to transmit laser energy to a point substantially beyond the distal end of the cannula, the optical fiber laser delivery device having a forward-firing firing tip at a distal end thereof, the forward-firing firing tip of the optical fiber laser delivery device extending through the forward facing opening at the tip of the distal end of the hollow cannula, the proximal end of the optical fiber laser delivery device exiting the cannula through the fiber access port; a thermal sensor having a proximal end, the thermal sensor extending through the hollow cannula such that the proximal end extends through the forward facing opening at the distal end of the cannula and terminates behind the firing tip of the optical fiber laser delivery device such that laser energy emitted from the firing tip does not impinge directly on the proximal end of the thermal sensor; and a compression seal located at the proximal end of the hollow cannula to seal the fiber access port from the outside suction source, whereby the forward-firing firing tip can be advanced through the forward facing opening at the distal tip of the hollow cannula and used to cut through fibrous tissue strands.