200 mw shone in eye for split second, but had eye glasses on?

[Lakalia]

So my boyfriend was playing with the cat and I walked into the room and the 200mw green laser shone in my left eye for a split second, except I had my regular seeing eye glasses on. My vision doesn't feel funny or anything but I hear it can start to show up later. I was wondering if maybe my eye glasses protected me a bit? And if I should go to the doctor anyways? Like I said, this happened like 30 mins ago and I don't see a black hole in my vision or anything.

 

[NightExplorer96]

One thing I can say for sure, I doubt severely he had a 200mW green laser. The cat would be smart enough to not chase that.....hopefully.

Just set-up a appointment with your doctor tomorrow and get the earliest appointment you can!

-Alex

 

[Isaac Clarke]

agree.

 

[Lakalia]

One thing I can say for sure, I doubt severely he had a 200mW green laser. The cat would be smart enough to not chase that.....hopefully.

Just set-up a appointment with your doctor tomorrow and get the earliest appointment you can!

-Alex

Well I looked at the laser and it says "200mw and 532 output" or something.

 

[Lakalia]

One thing I can say for sure, I doubt severely he had a 200mW green laser. The cat would be smart enough to not chase that.....hopefully.

Just set-up a appointment with your doctor tomorrow and get the earliest appointment you can!

-Alex

I'm sorry I mean the output is 200mw, and the wavelength is 532 nm

 

[Lakalia]

agree.

Well I asked my boyfriend and he said it's actually only 5mw but for some reason the laser says 200mw.

 

[Pi R Squared]

Well I looked at the laser and it says "200mw and 532 output" or something.

I am guessing it says <200mW meaning something less than 200mW. If it's over 5mW then you can't blink your eye fast enough and it is potentially dangerous, yes much of it could have reflected off your glasses if it hit at the right angle. If it's a cheap laser 301/303 or something similar then the power is unpredictable regardless of what the label says. It probably isn't safe to use with the cat or other pets. If it has a visible beam in very dim light then it is powerful enough to be dangerous to pets or people.

Alan

 

[NightExplorer96]

Well I looked at the laser and it says "200mw and 532 output" or something.

I am guessing it says <200mW meaning something less than 200mW. If it's over 5mW then you can't blink your eye fast enough and it is potentially dangerous, yes much of it could have reflected off your glasses if it hit at the right angle. If it's a cheap laser 301/303 or something similar then the power is unpredictable regardless of what the label says. It probably isn't safe to use with the cat or other pets. If it has a visible beam in very dim light then it is powerful enough to be dangerous to pets or people.

Alan

^This.

There isn't much you can do right now unfortunately. Honestly, I would get rid of that thing and buy your boyfriend a certified Class IIIa(<5mW) laser which he could use with the cat, and would be completely eye safe.

If you are interested take a look around the forums for some true <5mW 532nm lasers.

-Alex

 

[Razako]

1-That laser is probably way too strong to be used as a cat toy.
2-If you're lucky you won't have damage. The laser was likely nowhere near 200mw and if it was a glancing blow you might have avoided damage.
3-Go to laserglow and get a SAFE 3-5mw laser to use with the cat.

 

[Lakalia]

I am guessing it says <200mW meaning something less than 200mW. If it's over 5mW then you can't blink your eye fast enough and it is potentially dangerous, yes much of it could have reflected off your glasses if it hit at the right angle. If it's a cheap laser 301/303 or something similar then the power is unpredictable regardless of what the label says. It probably isn't safe to use with the cat or other pets. If it has a visible beam in very dim light then it is powerful enough to be dangerous to pets or people.

Alan

Yeah I saw now it said "<200mw" I thought it meant the laser is 200mw. But he just told me it was a 5mw laser which is apparently the legal limit.

 

[Isaac Clarke]

Well lasers are dangerous. But glasses wouldve reflects a huge chunk of the laser... Because they are non polarized... Tried to focus a laser using glasses once. Only a portion get through while the rest are reflected.

 

[ultimatekaiser]

I'm sure you're fine, but having a retinal exam done would be a good idea to rule out long term damage. I've been in an accident where a 175mW laser was shone through glass and a reflection in my eye once for an instant and had no detrimental effects thankfully, but not everyone is so lucky. Safety glasses are always a good idea, even for low power stuff at times. A healthy respect for one should be shown always, just as with any other tool...be it a wrench, or a gun, or a laser. :beer:

 

[Trendkilla254]

He's likely telling you 5mw because he knows that is the safe limit. I'm not calling him a liar... but... you know people can and will say anything to try to get out of situations. I'd recommend a retinal exam.

 

[GSS]

1-That laser is probably way too strong to be used as a cat toy.
2-If you're lucky you won't have damage. The laser was likely nowhere near 200mw and if it was a glancing blow you might have avoided damage.
3-Go to laserglow and get a SAFE 3-5mw laser to use with the cat.

^this^
I just cringe every time I read when someone plays with his cat with an ebay pen

 

[InfinitusEquitas]

Definitely make an appointment with an eye doctor, preferably an ophthalmologist, and get your retina examined. Since you aren't noticing any problems, most likely you got lucky, but it's still a good idea to get an exam done. If nothing else it will give you a baseline for the future, in case of any additional injuries, or eye related issues.

On the good news front, you have a trump card for all future arguments with the boyfriend for the next few months at least.

 

[Vision]

Another accident. This is getting ridiculous. Well at least it didn't say <1000mw.

:knight: