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376-1984-00L 3 Credits MSC , NDS D-HEST , D-MAVT , D-PHYS , D-ITET
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Lasers in Medicine

Lecturers & Examiners: Prof. Dr. Martin Frenz
VVZ CR n/a

Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:42:05

Abstract

The lecture will provide answers to questions such as: Why lasers? How do lasers work? How does light interact with tissue? We will concentrate on three major interaction categories: Therapeutic (from cell surgery to vision correction and general surgery), Diagnostics (from detection of neural cell activity to diagnostics of cancer), and Imaging (from single molecules to optical tomography).

Objective

Knowledge about the physical principles of a laser. You know the properties of laser light and how they can be used for medical applications. You understand the physical principles underlyingthe light-tissue interaction. You can explain what resolution, contrast and magnification means. You are able to order the right safety google for your laser system. You are able to determine the optimum laser parameters for a specific clinical application.

Content

Lasers become increasingly important in almost all medical disciplines especially where they can be used selectively to treat soft and hard tissue in a non-invasive manner or for diagnostic purposes. Basic mechanisms of light propagation in tissue as well as laser-tissue-interactions i.e. photochemical, photothermal and photomechanical interaction will be discussed. The influence of laser wavelength and pulse duration on the interaction process will be studied. Different laser and beam delivery systems used in medicine will be presented. Different clinical laser applications in ophthalmology, urology, gynecology and ENT-surgery will be discussed. Diagnostic applications as well as biomedical imaging techniques are considered. Laser safety.

Resources

Lecture Notes

will be published in the Internet (ILIAS)

Literature

- M. Born, E. Wolf, "Principles of Optics", Pergamon Press - B.E.A. Saleh, M.C. Teich, "Fundamentals of Photonics", John Wiley and Sons, Inc. - A.E. Siegman, "Lasers", University Science Books - O. Svelto, "Principles of Lasers", Plenum Press - J. Eichler, T. Seiler, "Lasertechnik in der Medizin", Springer Verlag - M.H. Niemz, "Laser-Tissue Interaction", Springer Verlag - A.J. Welch, M.J.C. van Gemert, "Optical-thermal response of laser-irradiated tissue", Plenum Press

General Information

Language
English
Levels
MSC , NDS
Frequency
Every two years

Examination

Type
end-of-semester examination

Course Components

Type Title Time & Place Hours
lecture with exercise Lasers in Medicine
  • Tue 14:15-17:00 (ETZ E 7)
3 h weekly

Offered In