Method and system for cataract removal
A phacoemulsification system, method and computer program product, the system comprising: a phacoemulsification probe having at its distal end a needle to be inserted into an eye, the probe comprising an ultrasonic transducer; an optical fiber transferring light from a source and having a distal end positioned in proximity to the tip of the needle for emitting light of predetermined frequency or pattern; a light sensor for detecting the light; and a processor, for repeatedly: receive from the sensor an indication of the detected light; determine whether the detected light complies with a condition indicating contact between the needle and a lens of the eye; subject to determining compliance with the condition and that the ultrasonic transducer being inactive, toggle the ultrasonic transducer ON; and subject to determining that the detected light does not comply with the condition and that the ultrasonic transducer being active, toggle the ultrasonic transducer OFF.
1 . A phacoemulsification system, comprising:
a phacoemulsification probe having a needle at its distal end, the needle configured to be inserted into an eye of a patient, the probe comprising an ultrasonic transducer;
an optical fiber transferring light from a light source and having a distal end positioned in proximity to a tip of the needle for emitting light of at least one predetermined frequency or pattern;
a light sensor for detecting the light emitted by the optical fiber in the at least one predetermined frequency or pattern; and
a processor, configured to repeatedly:
receive from the light sensor an indication of the detected light;
determine whether the detected light complies with a condition indicating contact between the needle and a lens of the eye;
subject to determining that the detected light complies with the condition and that the ultrasonic transducer is inactive, toggle the ultrasonic transducer to transmit ultrasonic waves; and
subject to determining that the detected light does not comply with the condition and that the ultrasonic transducer is active, toggle the ultrasonic transducer to stop transmitting ultrasonic waves.
2 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein said determining is based on synchronization between toggling the light source and the indication received from the light sensor.
3 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the optical fiber is within an aspiration hollow of the phacoemulsification probe.
4 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the light source is positioned within the phacoemulsification probe.
5 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the light sensor comprises one or more photodiodes.
6 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is implemented as a microcontroller.
7 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the condition is that an amount of the detected light is below a predetermined value.
8 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the condition is that an amount of the light is lower in at least a predetermined quantity or percent than a previous measure.
9 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the condition is that a derivative of the indication of the detected light is below a threshold.
10 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the condition is associated with a spatial distribution or pattern of the detected light over the light sensor.
11 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein whether the condition holds is determined by a trained artificial intelligence engine.
12 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 11 , wherein the condition is that the artificial intelligence engine recognizes whether the reflected light indicates that the probe is in contact with the lens or not.
13 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 11 wherein the artificial intelligence engine is trained upon a training set comprising pairs of detected light and a label indicating whether there is contact between the needle and the lens, and wherein the label is obtained in accordance with a physician manually activating the ultrasonic transducer when there is contact.
14 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one predetermined frequency is between 50 and 200 Hz.
15 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , further comprising:
an irrigation channel for irrigating the eye with irrigation fluid;
an irrigation sensor, which is coupled with the irrigation channel and is configured to measure a parameter indicative of a pressure of the irrigation fluid; and
an irrigation pump configured to flow the irrigation fluid to the irrigation channel.
16 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 1 , further comprising:
an aspiration channel for evacuating material from the eye;
an aspiration sensor, coupled with the aspiration channel and configured to measure a value indicative of a pressure in the aspiration channel; and
an aspiration pump configured to evacuate the material from the aspiration channel.
17 . The phacoemulsification system of claim 16 , wherein subject to the aspiration sensor indicating a clogging of the aspiration channel, the ultrasonic transducer is toggled OFF.