How Sensors Assist Surgeons in Eye Surgery

The fourth installment in our series on platform sensors covers the advantages of flexible sensor designs for use in devices used in eye surgery.

April 24, 2013

2 Min Read
How Sensors Assist Surgeons in Eye Surgery

Pressurization is one of the biggest concerns during eye surgery, including cataract and glaucoma treatments. Eye or intraocular pressure needs to be monitored and controlled precisely and accurately during surgery. In treating refractory glaucoma, for example, the surgical device must be centered on the eye, which requires highly accurate airflow and air-pressure measurement at very low pressures for leak detection. This prevents damage to sensitive eye tissues. 

In eye surgery applications, it's critical to be able to scale the sensors to a particular airflow or pressure range. By taking a platform approach, the sensor manufacturer can adjust to different flow ranges to quickly customize designs.

A pressure pump, which is used to maintain the pressure on the eye for patient safety, integrates airflow and pressure sensors. An airflow sensor is used to control the air pressure while the pressure sensor is used as a safety valve. Pressure sensors are used to maintain precise pressure and inhibit suction loss to prevent any damage to the patient's eye during surgery.

Pressure sensors that provide pressure range customization, several connection options, calibration, amplification, and temperature compensation can be designed into many different product platforms. This translates into lower costs, faster time to market and reduced assembly time.

AJ Smith is director of product marketing at Honeywell Sensing and Control, where he is responsible for leading, managing, and directing all product-marketing-related activities within the pressure and thermal business. He holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and received his MBA from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus with specializations in finance, strategic management, and international business. He can be reached at [email protected].

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