title: Accidental macular injury with class IVb laser outside the medical settings.
abstract: In the medical settings, safety precautions are used to mitigate inadvertent ocular damage due to laser beams. High power lasers are illegal in many countries; however, they are sometimes used on social occasions. Use by an untrained member of the public can result in severe accidental ocular damage. We report a case of macular damage and central visual loss due to the illegal use of a class IVb 2000 mW power laser in a 20-year-old male. To our knowledge, this is the first case of macular injury due to this particular type of laser. The case history and management over a 6-month period is described. Pubic education initiatives are required to increase the awareness of the dangerous nature of laser beam exposure outside a medical setting.
authors.affiliation: Vitreoretinal Division, King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital, PO Box 7191, Riyadh 11462, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Ehab
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Abdelkader
keywords: Autofluorescence; Laser; Macular injury