Minimal Stress System Traditional phaco emulsification technology Minimal Stress phaco emulsification technology Why did we name this technology Minimal Stress? Slim4 titanium phaco handpiece

 

is the international patent granted to Optikon, that enables Optikon phaco emulsifiers to: measure the tip stroke, in real time control the mechanical power delivered to the patient eye ensure the user’s stroke setting independently from nucleus density, age of phaco handpiece and other external factors

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With the surgeon delivers to the patient’s eye the ultrasound energy minimum necessary to emulsify the lens, and:

• Minimizes trauma at phaco incision level (corneal burns, edema etc.)

• Eliminates nucleus "bouncing", thus reducing risks of capsular breakage and endothelium damage

• Eliminates cavitations, thus increasing visibility during surgery

With surgeon can set and control exactly and continuously the tip stroke, hence the ultrasonic power.

With surgeon’s phaco setting is always exact and repeatable.

With surgeon can assess at any time the phaco handpiece efficiency (maximum stroke).

With the handpiece life span is longer (less stress for the piezo crystals)

The phaco handpiece contains piezoelectric transducers transforming electrical energy into mechanical energy.

Mechanical Energy = Phaco Power = k x frequency² x tip stroke

• k depends on impact surface (difference between tip outer and inner diameter)
• frequency is set by the manufacturer (40 kHz)
• tip stroke is a function of the electrical power set by the user

IMPORTANT:

If the surgeon wants to increase or decrease the phaco power, the only parameter he can adjust is the electrical power to the handpiece.

THE QUESTION IS:

When the surgeon sets the electrical power on the traditional phaco console, does he know what phaco power will result?

THE ANSWER IS:

No!

On traditional phaco equipment the phaco power is unknown to the user.

Phaco power, depending on tip stroke, is a result of:

• Electrical power setting
• Nucleus hardness/tip load
• Handpiece wear & tear
• Handpiece efficiency

In other words the surgeon does not know how much mechanical energy will be delivered to the patient’s eye!

Unlike vacuum, flow rate, vitreous cutter speed, etc., the most important phaco parameter is not directly controlled by the surgeon.

adds to the traditional piezo-electric system a "double feedback" mechanism which reads on real time the tip stroke and adjusts it continuously to match exactly surgeon’s stroke setting.

Mechanical Energy = Phaco Power = stroke setting.

• Stroke can be adjusted by the user.

If the surgeon wants to increase or decrease the phaco power, the only parameter he is supposed to adjust is the stroke setting.

When the surgeon sets the ultrasound stroke on the phaco console, he knows exactly how much phaco power he delivers to the patient eye!

Suppose we need a tip stroke of 60 microns to emulsify a very hard cataract. The surgeon will set the phaco power at 60%, assuming that the handpiece delivers 100 microns at 100%.

On traditional system:
When the tip does not touch the nucleus, tip stroke is 60 microns. When the tip does touch the nucleus, tip stroke decreases (to around 20/30 microns) which is insufficient to emulsify the lens. The surgeon must then increase the power to 80-90% so that tip stroke reaches 60 microns when the tip is loaded. Overall mechanical energy delivered to the eye increases.	[Click here to enlarge this image]

On Minimal Stress system:
When the tip does not touch the nucleus, tip stroke is 60 microns. When the tip does touch the nucleus, tip stroke does not change because of the "stroke ruler" feedback. The surgeon does not need to increase the power. Overall mechanical energy delivered to the eye is minimized.	[Click here to enlarge this image]

The stroke control allowed Optikon engineers to design the smallest and lightest phaco handpiece available today. This is a further fringe benefit of Optikon revolutionary phaco system.