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Answer to Question #2694 Submitted to "Ask the Experts"Category: Pregnancy and Radiation — Exposures not directly to embryo/fetus The following question was answered by an expert in the appropriate field: Q
The other day, while my husband was doing some construction work, I walked in the area and he was using a laser-beam level. It was turned on and I didn't realize it and walked right through it. I am concerned because I was very close to the level unit which was on a table top. I walked through the red beam which was at about waist high or a little higher. It was only a second that I walked through but I am worried now because I have been reading on the Internet that lasers are dangerous during pregnancy because of radiation . . . and pregnant women should avoid laser treatments. I am not sure if it is the same type of laser though . . . can you help me out and clarify this for me? Can you tell me if my brief exposure to the laser light on the level my husband was using was dangerous to my baby?
A
There is no risk to the baby from the laser exposure. Laser beams barely penetrate the outer layers of skin when external to the body. The beam emitted from a laser is simply light in a different frequency from the type that light our houses. The concern about laser surgery during pregnancy has to do with the anxiety and stress associated with the surgical procedure, and the anesthesia.
For a laser beam such as the one you describe, it is the eyes that are at risk of possible biological effects if the beam enters one of them.
Kelly Classic
Certified Medical Health Physicist
Answer posted on 20 June 2003. The information and material posted on this Web site is intended as general reference information only. Specific facts and circumstances may alter the concepts and applications of materials and information described herein. The information provided is not a substitute for professional advice and should not be relied upon in the absence of such professional advice specific to whatever facts and circumstances are presented in any given situation. Answers are correct at the time they are posted on the Web site. Be advised that over time, some requirements could change, new data could be made available, or Internet links could change. For answers that have been posted for several months or longer, please check the current status of the posted information prior to using the responses for specific applications.
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