I. Introduction A. Definitions of Lasers and Medicine 1. Laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. 2. Medicine is the applied science or practice of the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease. B. How they relate? 1. Cure diseases, surgeries, etc. 2. Medical Field related C. Thesis – In the medical field, lasers have developed into medicines that are surpassing the “go to” medicines in everyday lives. II. Lasers Background Information A. History of Lasers 1.
In 1917, Albert Einstein established the theoretical foundations for the laser and the maser in the paper Zur Quantentheorie der Strahlung. 2. The first working laser was made by Theodore H. Maiman in 1960 at Hughes Research Laboratories in Malibu, California. B. What are lasers used for? 1. Medical, Industrial, Environmental, Communications, Research, etc. i. Examples – Laser eye surgery, hair removal, heart surgeries, kidney stone repair. C. Chemistry / Physics related to Lasers 1.
Uses a quantum mechanical effect, stimulated emission, to generate a coherent beam of light from a lasing medium of controlled purity, size, and shape. 2. The energy of an electron orbiting an atomic nucleus is larger for orbits further from the nucleus of an atom. However, quantum mechanical effects force electrons to take on discrete positions in orbitals. Thus, electrons are found in specific energy levels of an atom. III. Medicine Background Information A. History of Medicine 1. Early records on medicine have been discovered from ancient Egyptian medicine, Babylonian medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, classical Chinese medicine, and ancient Greek medicine and Roman medicine. 2.
The Greek physician Hippocrates, the “father of medicine” laid the foundation for a rational approach to medicine. B. Types of Medicines 1. Antibiotics and antibacterial substances. Minerals, for example iron, vitamins and electrolytes. Sedatives and analgesics (painkillers). Parasecticides to treat mange, lice and worms. Vaccines and sera (and miscellaneous medicines). Hormones. Growth promoters and probiotics. Colostrum supplements. & More. C. Most Consumed Medication 1. Vicodin – a 40-year-old addictive medicine that combines the narcotic hydrocodone with acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol; the prescription tally also includes numerous generic versions. IV. Lasers vs. Medicine A. Similarity 1. Cure sickness, diseases.
B. Difference 1. Different results, Lasers have a long term affect and Medications can be temporary. i. Hair removal – Laser Hair removal can be a permanent change Medications for hair removal can last only 1 month maximum. V. Own Experience A. Laser Hair Removal 1. I prefer medication instead B. Grandfathers open heart surgery with Laser 1. Successful, recent advance in minimally invasive heart surgery. TMR uses a “cold beam” excimer laser and a unique laser delivery system to create open channels in the heart.
This technique is utilized to drill 10 -30 holes from a dying heart muscle to the left ventricle. Although these holes in the heart close, they are said to trigger the growth of new heart in the heart through a process called angiogenesis. Thus, oxygenated blood flows through these new vessels from the left ventricle to heart muscle that had not been receiving proper oxygen or nutrients due to an occlusion in the coronary arteries. VI. Conclusion A. My input B. Go over basic information 1. Definitions compare and contrast C. How they relate, and affects of each.