What is laser used for?
Surgeries that involves the use of laser include:
- cardiology
- LASIK(shown on the right)
- dentistry
- gastroenterology (treatment of disorders of the stomach and intestines)
- oncology (cancer treatment)
- ophthalmology (treatment of disorders of the eye)
- orthopedics (treatment of disorders of bones, joints, muscles, ligaments, and tendons)
- pulmonary care (treatment of disorders of the respiratory system)
- urology (treatment of disorders of the urinary tract and of the male reproductive system)
How does it work?
Laser surgery is a surgery that uses a laser, instead of a scalpel, to cut tissue. The laser beam vaporizes soft tissue with high water content. The molecular bonds of a material are dissolved by a laser.
What is the advantage of laser therapy? |
What is the disadvantage of laser therapy? |
Lasers are more precise than standard surgical tools, so they do less damage to normal tissues. It is often referred as the "bloodless surgery" as is usually involve less bleeding than conventional surgeries. Patients usually have less pain, bleeding, swelling, and scarring. It takes less time for patients to heal after laser surgery. They are less likely to get infections as the heat generated by the laser keeps the surgical site free of germs.
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Surgeons guiding the laser must have specialized training before they can do laser therapy. Strict safety precautions must also be followed. Furthermore, laser therapy is expensive and requires bulky equipment. The treatment has to be repeated in order to get the full benefit as the effects may not last long.
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What is the limitation of laser?
The effects of laser does not last forever, thus it has to be done repeatedly to get the full benefit. The skin colour may be lighter for the treated areas, which can be treated by permanently tattooing the skin. The result of laser therapy is hard to predict. It may cause burns or injuries.