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Abstract

The apparatus for combined mechanical/laser myocardial revascularization of a human heart includes: inserting a mechanical piercing device and an elongated flexible lasing apparatus into the chest cavity of a patient; mechanically auto-piercing, micro-tearing or spreading the epicardium of the heart; and then lasing from beneath the epicardium through the myocardium. The apparatus is guided to an area exterior to a ventricle of the patient's heart, and the distal end of the energy delivery device such as an optical fiber apparatus is placed internal to the exterior wall of the heart through an opening which has been created by mechanically piercing, micro-tearing or spreading the epicardium, so that the myocardium and not the epicardium is irradiated with laser energy to allow passage of said energy delivery device such as an optical fiber distal end or said laser energy into the left ventricular cavity without causing a laser irradiation of the epicardium which might be a cause of operative bleeding and for better allowing the sealing of the epicardium after the apparatus is removed. The apparatus includes a hand-held device controllable by the physician having a removable distal head portion with an auto-piercing mechanism and can use a vacuum source to provide a suction force at the head portion. The auto-piercing mechanism is implemented by various ways such as a spring-biased actuating member in the TMR hand-held device and an electro-mechanical operated piercing mechanism. The hand-held TMR device with handle assembly can also be controlled by a computer to provide auto- sequencing of the auto-piercing needle mechanism and the laser firing with auto-fiber advancement.

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First Claim