Computational modeling of laser-tissue interaction in the retina can be used to predict the thermal response to a laser exposure. For in vivo photochemical damage threshold experiments, where temperature rise in retinal tissue cannot be conveniently measured, modeling was used to predict retinal temperature response. Laser exposures from sixteen in vivo experiments with wavelengths in the visible band were selected to represent a wide range of powers and exposure durations. It is hypothesized that photochemical damage mechanisms were responsible for changes to subjects’ retinal tissue and that thermal response is not a significant contribution to this observed damage.
Results from the model predicted peak temperature responses of less than one Kelvin in the RPE layer of the retina where the largest temperature rise would be expected. These findings support the claim that changes to retinal tissue were not directly caused by a thermally induced mechanism.