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Abstract

A laser system for intraocular tissue removal including a handpiece and a nose cone assembly releasably coupled to the handpiece. The handpiece and nose cone assembly have mating passageways for aspiration and irrigation, and the handpiece supports a laser energy transmitting tube that is releasably received in the nose cone assembly. The nose cone assembly comprises an outer housing, an inner housing located inside the outer housing, and an aspiration tube located inside the inner housing. The outer and inner housings and the aspiration tube have coaxially aligned lateral openings defining a photovaporization chamber. The distal end of the laser energy transmitting tube is located adjacent the photovaporization chamber. In use, tissue to be removed is aspirated into the photovaporization chamber where it is vaporized by the laser energy and then conducted along the aspiration tube. Irrigation fluid flows between the outer and inner housings and then out the end of the outer housing to cool the photovaporization chamber and replace the tissue volume removed from the eye. Preferably, the laser energy transmitting means is a fiber optic rod with a lens fused on the end to direct the laser energy into the photovaporization chamber and thus prevent it from being scattered into the eye. Nose cone assemblies of different configurations can be releasably coupled to the handpiece and exchanged during surgery.