Laser Pointers Causes Severe Eye Hazards, Doctors Say
September 12th, 2010 - 6:47 pm ICT by GDBy Gina Gomez
Sep 12, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Science and technology has made our lives easier by inventing new things which is useful for the daily activities. However, it has many disadvantages as well. Recently a reputed media source reported that a 15 year old boy damaged his eyes while playing with a laser pointer that he bought over the Internet.
The doctors always suggest that laser pointers with power less than 5 milliwatts are safe to use but the devices which are sold online with power of 100mW can cause permanent eye damage. Dr. George A. Williams of American Academy of Opthalmology said that the powerful laser beams as a legitimate public health “menace”. The boys case was reported in the last Thursday’s issue of the New England Journal of Medicine by the doctors who treated him at the Lucerne Cantonal Hospital in Switzerland. Previously the media reported two such incidents. A teenager damaged his eye with high powered laser pointer and also a British physician said that his vision was affected for several months after he was struck suddenly by his 7 year old son.
The media source reported that the Swiss boy’s laser light was 30 times more powerful than the Food and Drug Administration limits. The boy reportedly bought the laser pointer to pop balloons and burn holes in papers. The doctor, who treated him said that one day he was playing with the laser pointer in front of a mirror to create a light show and he accidentally zapped his eyes with the green light several times. After that he faced a problem with his vision as it became blurry. Dr. George A. Williams said that he was stunned that a kid can get access to such high powered laser pointer. However, the doctor also warned the parents to be aware of the inappropriate lasers available over the “Internet”.
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Tags: american academy of opthalmology, british physician, dr george, england journal of medicine, eye damage, eye hazards, food and drug administration, gina gomez, journal of medicine, laser beams, laser light, laser pointer, laser pointers, media source, milliwatts, new england journal, new england journal of medicine, news science, public health menace, swiss boy