Lawrence Oh1,2, Stephanie Watson2,3

Purpose: Case report describing a 24 year old female who had incidental exposure of her cornea to intense pulsed light (IPL) therapy whilst undergoing cosmetic hair epilation. Primary objective is to inform ophthalmologists, cosmetic laser therapists and patients of the ocular risks associated with IPL therapy in the facial region and education regarding appropriate preventative measures.

Methods: Case report of a patient with corneal injury followed up over 2 years. Literature review of the PubMed database reviewed the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis and management of corneal incidence

Results: Visual acuity was 6/6 best corrected in each eye with ocular tensions being within normal limits. Slit lamp revealed the five scattered, circular posterior corneal lesions in the patient’s right eye approximately 0.2 mm in size at the level of Descemet’s membrane. The rest of the ocular examination was within normal limits. Review at 4 months and 2 years revealed no change in corneal scars or visual acuity. To our knowledge, this is the first case of direct corneal damage from IPL.

Conclusion: IPL therapy for hair removal has now become widely available, with increasing emergence of home-based treatments. Our case and literature reviews highlights that patients are subjecting themselves to the risk of ocular complication, particularly if staff inadequately trained in the use of the equipment and appropriate protective eye wear is not worn. Patients should be counselled as to these risks with increasing efforts made to collate cases of ocular damage associated with the use of cosmetic lasers around the face.