New Techniques In Laser Treatment

Lasers are playing a larger part in equine surgery.
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Just as laser surgery has become commonplace in human medicine, lasers are playing a larger part in equine surgery. A laser–which stands for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation–generates and concentrates light of different wavelengths. Focused light can make an incision, while a defocused beam will ablate (evaporate) tissue or, depending on the distance, function in place of a cautery (an agent used to burn, sear, or destroy tissue). The surgical procedure determines how the laser is used and which type is best suited to the job.

Laser equipment and the fibers it utilizes to create light are expensive, so their use is often confined to the larger veterinary hospitals and clinics. There are no special training requirements to own a surgical laser, but, "It would be foolish to try to do this without any kind of training at all," says Ken Sullins, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, of the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center (EMC) in Leesburg, Va.

Since 1989, Sullins and others have used CO2 and ND:YAG lasers to improve or replace some conventional surgeries. For example, with the CO2 laser, a surgeon is able to ablate a tumor on the surface of the cornea, while an ND:YAG or diode laser used endoscopically makes it possible to evaporate a formerly unreachable uterine cyst or correct an upper airway problem such as an entrapped epiglottis. In fact, many cases that formerly required a large incision and general anesthesia can now be done while the horse is sedated and standing, using an endoscope inserted through a natural opening or a small incision.

Sullins has recently adapted two new laser procedures. One dramatically shortens recovery time and minimizes discomfort for a horse with bladder stones; the other, if used early on problem arytenoid cartilage (relating to small muscles or unpaired muscles of the larynx), might be career-saving for high-performance horses such as racehorses

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Written by:

Susan Konkle is a freelance writer from Rockville, Va., whose primary horse interest is show hunters. With her horses spending more time in surgery than showing, she became interested in researching and writing about veterinary care and treatments.

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