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Abstract

A method of selecting laser parameters for performing laser-assisted myocardial revascularization to avoid inducing undesired cardiac arrhythmia without synchronization of delivery of laser energy and the patient's cardiac cycle, the method comprising the steps of minimizing the power level of laser energy used, thereby decreasing the overall trauma to the heart, selecting a pulse frequency as great as possible while avoiding adverse summation effects, selecting a pulse width as wide as possible to prevent excessively high peak powers per pulse and not so wide as to cause undesired thermal damage, selecting an energy flux rate, shaping the front end of each pulse of laser energy to provide efficient, non-explosive TMR channeling, and correcting the selected power level, pulse width, pulse frequency and energy flux rate for mechanical events, including method of access to the heart, position of selected portions of myocardium in the heart, temporal duration of the procedure, natural movement of the heart, specific heart geometry, pre-existing heart arrhythmia and other factors causing a predisposition to heart arrhythmia. A method for performing laser-assisted transmyocardial revascularization (TMR) and percutaneous transluminal myocardial revascularization (PTMR) using such laser energy with parameters selected to avoid inducing undesired cardiac arrhythmia, the method comprising the steps of generating laser energy having a predetermined non-square wave shape, a predetermined wavelength, a predetermined energy flux and a predetermined power level, and delivering the laser energy in a plurality of pulses, the plurality of pulses having a predetermined pulse frequency and a predetermined pulse width, to selected portions of myocardium to form TMR and PTMR channels without synchronizing delivery of the laser beam with the cardiac cycle.

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