Laser Pointer Burns Hole In A 9-Year-Old’s Eye
After staring into a green laser pointer, a boy’s retina was permanently injured.
Doctors in Greece examined the boy’s eye and saw a large hole in the macular tissue of one of his eyes. They published the case in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Imaging of the eye reveals a hole in the macular tissue of his left eye and two spots below the hole. After the boy’s vision got worse, his parents took him to an ophthalmology clinic. The boy told the doctors that he played with a laser pointer bought by his father from a street merchant, and then, his vision got worse.
Permanent Vision Loss
The boy had 18 months of conservative treatment, but his vision didn’t improve. Sofia Androudi, who works at the University of Thessaly in Larissa, is one of the physicians treating the boy, stated that surgery that treats macular holes lead to cataracts:
“This means that even if the surgery would be successful, the boy would not be able to see.”
Thomas C Lee is the director of the Vision Center at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. He was not involved in the study, but he wants to explain that lasers are powerful and can damage the vision:
“When you have something as powerful as a laser, it’s so powerful that it is converted to heat like a burn. That can leave scar tissue behind and can cause bleeding. The patient can actually get a blind spot right in the middle of the eye. It’s like a magnifying glass burning a piece of paper. It’s the same thing.”
Androudi explained that the boy may have been suffering from vision loss after the laser burn for more than a year since he went to get checked at the ophthalmology clinic. She said that not many children are willing to disclose their eye injuries.
Powerful Lasers Can Be Bought Online, Despite US FDA Warnings
Many countries have limited the sale of laser devices, and they should not have more than 1mW of power. But they powerful laser can be found online. The US Food and Drug Administration warns against the powerful lasers that give off more radiation. The more powerful lasers have green, blue and violet light.
Doris’s passion for writing started to take shape in college where she was editor-in-chief of the college newspaper. Even though she ended up working in IT for more than 7 years, she’s now back to what he always enjoyed doing. With a true passion for technology, Doris mostly covers tech-related topics.
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