Excimer laser surgery of the cornea: qualitative and quantitative aspects of photoablation according to the energy density.

Using an excimer laser working in the far ultraviolet and cutting fresh corneas of human cadaver eyes, we were able to demonstrate that there is an ideal fluence (joule/cm2/pulse) that allows a maximum tissue ablation depth per shot. Above the threshold of 1 J/cm2/pulse the depth of tissue ablated does not increase and both thermal and mechanical damage appears at the cut edges.