LASER POINTERS CAN CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY TO THE EYE
A recent case report in the New England Journal of Medicine details the story of a boy in Switzerland who suffered serious eye damage after playing with a laser pointer. The 15 year-old boy was attempting to create his own laser show using a laser pointer that he purchased on the internet and a mirror. As he was attempting his "light show" the laser hit the boy's eyes several times. He immediately noticed that his vision was blurry. Once doctors examined his eyes, they discovered that there had been significant internal bleeding in the left eye and there were several small scars in the right eye. The boy's vision has returned to near normal with treatment, however, he will have permanent scars in his left eye that will diminish his vision.
A more troubling fact may be that the boy in the case study wasn't aware that the laser was dangerous and did not know it could cause immediate eye damage. He told doctors that he purchased the laser pointer on the internet so that he could pop balloons from a distance, burn holes in paper cards, and burn holes in his sister's sneakers. The laser used by the boy produced an output of 150 milliwatts, which is far above the 5 milliwatt output of a typical laser pointer sold to the public. The authors of the case report noted that it is possible to purchase a laser pointer as strong as 700 milliwatts on the internet, and there are instructions on the internet for turning low-power devices into high-powered ones. Laser pointers sold in the U.S. are subject to a power limit imposed by the FDA, but laser pointers that exceed this limit are easily purchased on the internet.
According to the authors, every laser pointer capable of burning holes into paper, lighting matches, or popping balloons is highly dangerous to the eye and must not be used by non-professionals. Part of the problem, the authors say, is that all laser pointers are not labeled properly, so it is difficult to know if you have a pointer that could cause serious retinal injury and even blindness.
The Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll can help if you have been injured by a defective or improperly labeled product. Contact Jeffrey J. Kroll today or visit our website at www.kroll-lawfim.com
