Laser pointer maculopathy.

Abstract

To report a case of macular damage from a laser pointer. Case report. A 19-year-old woman had an acute reduction of visual acuity in the right eye after deliberately staring into a commercial class 2 laser pointer for approximately 10 seconds. The patient's best-corrected visual acuity was RE: 20/40, and she had two small pericentral scotomata, as well as a hypopigmented ring-shaped lesion in the fovea. Within 8 weeks, her visual acuity improved to 20/20 and visual field returned to normal, but a subjective relative decrease in brightness of objects viewed by the right eye was apparent. Retinal pigment epithelial abnormality persisted. Commercial laser pointers, commonly used for teaching and entertainment purposes, may cause notable macular damage if abused. Morphologically, this may manifest as foveal retinal pigment epithelial disturbance.