ArticleDeutsches Arzteblatt international2017
Retinal Injury Following Laser Pointer Exposure.
Article in Deutsches Arzteblatt international, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers.
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Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed.
- Multimodal evaluation of 525 nm laser-induced retinal injury in rabbits: structural, functional and cytokine analyses.Lasers in medical science · 2026Article
- Article
- Effects of a high-power laser eye exposure on avian foraging behaviour: implications for the safety of laser bird deterrents.Conservation physiology · 2026Article
- Clinical and Imaging Spectrum of Laser-Induced Maculopathy Caused by Laser Projection Devices.Cureus · 2025Article
- A swept-source optical coherence tomography study of the spectrum of laser pointer maculopathy.International journal of retina and vitreous · 2025Article
- Bilateral Maculopathy After Self-Inflicted Laser Pointer Injury.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Near-infrared imaging retinal diagnostic applications-a review.International ophthalmology · 2024Review
- Branch retinal artery occlusion from laser pointer misuse.American journal of ophthalmology case reports · 2024Article
- Sneeze and burn: Macular scars secondary to sun- and laser beam-staring to induce photic sneeze reflex.American journal of ophthalmology case reports · 2024Article
- Measuring spatial visual loss in rats by retinotopic mapping of the superior colliculus using a novel multi-electrode array technique.Journal of neuroscience methods · 2024Article
- An Investigation of a Biomimetic Optical System and an Evaluation Model for the Qualitative Analysis of Laser Interference Visual Levels.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Self-Inflicted Laser-Induced Retinopathy.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Is It Possible for Light-Based Hair Removal Home Devices to Induce Ocular Damage? Systematic Review.Clinical, cosmetic and investigational dermatology · 2023Review
- Segmentation of laser induced retinal lesions using deep learning (December 2021).Lasers in surgery and medicine · 2022Article
- Retinal injuries in seven teenage boys from the same handheld laser.American journal of ophthalmology case reports · 2022Article
- [Sudden bilateral loss of vision with scotomas].Der Ophthalmologe : Zeitschrift der Deutschen Ophthalmologischen Gesellschaft · 2022Article
- Radiobiological effects and medical applications of non-ionizing radiation.Saudi journal of biological sciences · 2021Review
- Laser-Induced Maculopathy and Outcomes After Treatment With Corticosteroids and Lutein.Cureus · 2021Article
- Effect of Retinal Injury Induced by Laser Photocoagulation on Visuospatial Memory in Mouse Model.Journal of neurosciences in rural practice · 2021Article
- Potential of laser-induced fluorescence-light detection and ranging for future stand-off virus surveillance.Microbial biotechnology · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundRecent years have seen a marked increase in laser-pointerrelated injuries, which sometimes involve severe retinal damage and irreversible visual impairment. These injuries are often caused by untested or incorrectly classified devices that are freely available over the Internet.
methodsWe reviewed pertinent publications retrieved by a systematic search in the PubMed and Web of Science databases and present our own series of clinical cases.
resultsWe identified 48 publications describing a total of 111 patients in whom both acute and permanent damage due to laser pointers was documented. The spectrum of damage ranged from focal photoreceptor defects to macular foramina and retinal hemorrhages associated with loss of visual acuity and central scotoma. On initial presentation, the best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was less than 20/40 (Snellen equivalent) in 55% of the affected eyes and 20/20 or better in 9% of the affected eyes. Treatment options after laserpointer- induced ocular trauma are limited. Macular foramina and extensive hemorrhages can be treated surgically. In our series of 7 cases, we documented impaired visual acuity, central visual field defects, circumscribed and sometimes complex changes of retinal reflectivity, and intraretinal fluid. Over time, visual acuity tended to improve, and scotoma subjectively decreased in size.
conclusionLaser pointers can cause persistent retinal damage and visual impairment. In view of the practically unimpeded access to laser pointers (even high-performance ones) over the Internet, society at large now needs to be more aware of the danger posed by these devices, particularly to children and adolescents.
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