PRELIMINARY EXPERIENCE WITH AN 810 NM WAVELENGTH DIODE-LASER IN ENT SURGERY

The 810 nm diode laser delivers light with similar physical characteri stics to the 1064 nm neodymium-yttrium aluminium garnet (Nd-YAG) laser . The diode laser was used in 25 ENT operations instead of the Nd-YAG laser. The laser has worked well and is a suitable surgical alternativ e to the Nd-YAG laser, with substantial advantages in terms of reliabi lity and low cost ownership. The system size is 391 x 387 x 160 mm, an d it weighs only 11 kg. The high efficiency of the laser diodes allows the system to be run from a standard wall socket electrical supply of less than 1 amp.