Fluid Temperature Effect on Superpulse Thulium Fiber Laser Stone Ablation - Andrei D. Cumpanas

June 1, 2023

Andrei Cumpanas presents a study on the impact of fluid temperature on stone ablation using superpulse thulium fiber laser. The study finds that warming the irrigation fluid to 37 degrees Celsius significantly increases the laser's efficiency in ablating urinary stones, enhancing the process by 12 to 29%. The effect is most notable on uric acid and calcium oxalate dihydrate stones. This research provides crucial insight into optimizing laser stone ablation in urological procedures.

Biographies:

Andrei D. Cumpanas, LIFT Research Fellow, Department of Urology, University of California, Irvine, CA


Read the Full Video Transcript

Andrei Cumpanas: Dear viewers, my name is Andrei Cumpanas. I'm a LIFT research scholar here at University of California, Irvine's Department of Urology, and today I'll be presenting the results of our study entitled Fluid Temperature Effect on Superpulse Thulium Fiber Laser Stone Ablation. Prior laser studies have shown that as the temperature of the medium increases there is less laser energy loss into the medium. Accordingly, we sought to evaluate the impact of irrigation temperature on the amount of stone ablation when using the superpulse thulium fiber laser.

12 stones each composed of calcium oxalate monohydrate, calcium oxalate dihydrate, and uric acid were immersed in either room temperature or body temperature saline. With the laser tip in contact with the stone, a single pulse was applied at two separate sites on the stone. Optical coherence tomography of the ablation cone allowed for the calculation of the volume of stone removed per each single laser pulse. In all cases, the superpulse thulium fiber laser efficiency in ablating urolithiasis was enhanced by 12 to 29% when using irrigation warmed at 37 degrees Celsius. This effect was the most notable for uric acid and calcium oxalate dihydrate stones. Thank you.