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Printer FriendlyReprinted with permission from Popular Mechanics, April
2000.
© Copyright The Hearst Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Laser-Guided Probe
A proximity sensor that prevents injuries during eye surgery has been developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash.
A fiberoptic wire attaches to the tip of a surgical instrument. The amount of light that reflects off the retina increases as the instrument moves closer to the back of the eye. A detector measures changes in light level and sounds an alarm when the probe is within 2mm of the delicate light-sensing tissue.
Johns Hopkins University will test the probe. If surgeons like it, Insight Instruments of Sanford, Fla., will incorporate it into their surgical tools.
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