Background Ocular trauma is a significant disabling health problem and a leading cause of visual impairment and loss worldwide. These injuries have many diverse costs including human suffering, long term disabilities, loss of productivity and economic hardship. Therefore, assessing the profile of ocular trauma, the etiology and its outcome is critical to the prevention of ocular injuries Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted on ocular trauma patients presenting to Berhan Ayni National Eye Referral Hospital from August – November, 2018. Data on demography, presenting visual acuity, type of injury and visual outcome were collected using a standardized questionnaire. The types of injuries were classified according to Birmingham Eye Trauma Terminology System. Pearson Chi-Square test (χ2)/or Fisher’s exact test in the Crosstab procedure was used to evaluate the relationship between specific variables. Logistic regression models were constructed to assess risk factors associated with blindness. Result 280 patients were seen with ocular trauma in the hospital during the study period. Males were 198 (70.7%) and peak age was 18–40 years. Ocular injury commonly occurred at home (31.8%), street and high way (31.4%) and workplace (28.9%). 24.7% of the injury was work-related. Common causes of injury were blunt objects (37.5%), sharp objects (31.1%) and fall (12.5%). 27.8% had open globe injury (OGI). Blindness was associated with rural residence (p < 0.0001), presentation greater than 24 hours (p = 0.04), non-use of eye protection goggles (p = 0.007), open globe injury (p = 0.018), posterior segment involvement (p < 0.0001) and hospitalization (p < 0.0001). Conclusion Immediate and comprehensive medical care is mandatory for ocular trauma patients. Educating the public especially at home and workplace is essential to prevent eye injuries.
Background: Ocular trauma has been a significant disabling health problem and a leading cause of visual loss in lower-middle-income countries. These injuries have many diverse costs including human suffering, long-term disabilities, loss of productivity, and economic hardship. This study was aimed to describe the pattern of ocular trauma, its visual outcome, and the overall epidemiology of ocular trauma in all patients presenting to Berhan Eye Hospital, Asmara, Eritrea. Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted on ocular trauma patients who presented to Berhan Eye Hospital for the open globe, closed globe, and peri-orbital trauma from September – November 2018 after ethical approval from the Ministry of Health, Eritrea. Data on demography, initial and final visual acuity, type of injury as well as its outcome were collected using U.S Eye Injury Registry checklist. The types of injuries were classified according to Birmingham Eye Trauma Terminology System (BETTS), SPSS Version 22 was used. Results: Ocular trauma accounted for 1.94% of the total patients attending the outpatient department (OPD) and emergency during the studied period. Of the studied 280 participants, 218 (77.9%) patients were below 40 years of age. The male to female ratio was 2.4:1. Closed globe injuries accounted the highest 205 (73.21%) followed by the open globe injuries 75 (26.79%). Home and industrial premises were the main places where ocular injuries occurred in the participants. Conclusions: Ocular trauma affects mainly the younger age group. Blunt objects trauma in the eye are more common in low resource settings. Ocular trauma is an important cause of monocular blindness which can be prevented with early intervention and health promotion.
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