ALTHOUGH lasers are an effective tool surgeons use to treat various medical conditions with pinpoint accuracy, they are dangerous when used by inexperienced persons and can cause burns and retinal damage.
Despite the serious health risks they pose, laser pointers are readily available in stores all over the Kingdom. Al-Riyadh daily reports on how young men buy the pointers and place the health and lives of others at risk by their reckless use.
Khalid Ahmad works for a wedding planning store that sells and rents laser party lights. It costs between SR60 and SR120 a day to rent a large laser party light. Customers are mainly people who want to use the lasers to celebrate a special occasion with friends and family.
While the store warns customers not to shine the lasers on people, it has little sway on how people use them.
“Laser lights are dangerous, there is no doubt about that. We ask customers not to point them on faces or bodies during the party because they can cause serious harm,” he said.
According to applied laser physics specialist Dr. Najm Al-Hussaini, there are three types of laser pointers: red, yellow and green. Of them red laser pointers are the cheapest and the least harmful because of its wavelength while the yellow ones are more harmful and green ones the most dangerous because of the strength of the laser.
“A person who points a green laser pointer at the cockpit of an airplane can get in serious trouble with punishments of up to five years in prison. That is why airlines require their pilots to return to the runway if they get exposed to green lasers,” he said.
Dr. Sulaiman Al-Kharashi, consultant ophthalmology surgeon, said while young men buy laser pointers so they can aim them at each other in a playful manner, most are unaware that these pointers can bring about serious damage to the retina, specifically the optic nerve, and eventually cause intraocular bleeding.
“Laser lights can penetrate the optic nerve and cause irreversible damage to the retina. Unfortunately, it is difficult to discover the damage early and by the time it is discovered by medical personnel, it is often too late,” he said.
“If you ask me, the use of laser pointers should be considered a crime. Young men use them inside stadiums and even point them at players on the opposing team. Most of the victims of laser pointers are children and teenagers,” he added.
Badar Al-Shatri, legal consultant, said the dangerous health risks that can result from the improper use of laser pointers constitute a criminal act that is punishable by law.
“While it is true that Saudi laws do not consider laser pointer possession a criminal act, any act that can bring about harmful effects is a punishable offense. If someone abuses a tool and such actions result in harm to others, he will be held accountable before a court for the consequences of his actions,” he added.
