To predict the outcome of laser therapy it is important to possess, among other things, an accurate knowledge of the intensity and distribution of the laser light incident on the tissue. For irradiation of the internal surfaces of hollow organs, modified fiber tips can be used to shape the light distribution to best suit the treatment geometry. There exist bulb-tipped optical fibers emitting a uniform isotropic distribution of light suitable for the treatment of organs which approximate a spherical geometry--the bladder, for example. For the treatment of organs approximating a cylindrical geometry--e.g. the oesophagus--an optical fiber tip which emits a uniform cylindrical distribution of light is required. We report on the design, development and testing of such a device, the CLD fiber tip. The device was made from a solid polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) rod, 27 mm in length and 4 mm in diameter. One end was shaped and 'silvered' to form a mirror which reflected the light emitted from the delivery fiber positioned at the other end of the rod. The shape of the mirror was such that the light fell with uniform intensity on the circumferential surface of the rod. This surface was coated with BaSO₄ reflectance paint to couple the light out of the rod and onto the surface of the tissue.

Date Published: 28 May 1993
PDF: 14 pages
Proc. SPIE 1893, Optical Fibers in Medicine VIII, (28 May 1993); doi: 10.1117/12.146348

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 1893:
Optical Fibers in Medicine VIII
Abraham Katzir, Editor(s)