April 2000

EYE SURGERY:
Improving Laser Eye Surgery

Badri Roysam, associate professor of electrical, computer, and systems engineering, and Chuck Stewart, associate professor of computer science, are collaborating on research to provide a three-dimensional image of the retina that could markedly improve results of laser retinal surgery. Both men teach at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

To locate retinal degeneration, physicians must first image the retina in the visible spectrum, then image the layer beneath the retina in the near-infrared spectrum using a fluorescent dye that reveals blocked blood vessels. A combination of the two images often is inaccurate.

This is one of the reasons why the current success rate for retinal laser surgery is below 50 percent, explained Roysam. The Rensselaer researchers’ new system will allow surgeons to see both views simultaneously while simulating curves of the retina.

“We like to think of this as a sort of GPS (global positioning satellite system) for the eye,” Roysam said. “Doctors can use it to target laser treatment to avoid
destruction of healthy tissue much like military personnel use GPs to target missiles accurately.”

“While our goal is to eventually improve laser surgery, our three-dimensional modeling can be used for diagnosis and treatment procedures prior to surgery, which is a great improvement on the methods already in use,” Stewart said.

CONTACT: Theresa Bourgeois, (518) 276-2840, bourgt@rpi.edu

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