School of Medicine Publications
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-17-2026
Abstract
Recreational inhalation of alkyl nitrites (“poppers”) is associated with a characteristic toxic maculopathy presumably due to ischemic changes in the central macula. Alkyl nitrite candles are available for purchase online and do not appear to be regulated. We report a unique retrospective case of vision loss following second-hand inhalation of vapor from a “poppers” candle in which a 29-year-old Hispanic male with no previous medical history presented with acute bilateral vision loss after attending a party at a nightclub. The patient denied sungazing, exposure to lasers, and a family history of inherited retinal disease. History was significant for use of a poppers-infused candle in a small, intimate private room. Visual acuity was 20/50 in both eyes. Central ellipsoid zone disruption was noted on bilateral optical coherence tomography. Visual acuity slowly improved to 20/40 in the right eye and 20/25 in the left eye over one year, with persistent ellipsoid zone disruption. In conclusion, alkyl nitrite-infused candles in confined spaces may be potent enough to cause poppers maculopathy.
Recommended Citation
Sayers, T., & Adam, M. K. (2026). Poppers Maculopathy Due to Alkyl Nitrite-Infused Candle: A Case Report. Cureus, 18(8). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.114697
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Publication Title
Cureus
DOI
10.7759/cureus.114697
Academic Level
medical student
Comments
© Copyright 2026 Sayers et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License CC-BY 4.0., which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.