Abstract
Purpose: :
Open globe injuries can result in severe vision loss. We investigated the incidence and epidemiology of open globe injuries in Wisconsin in 2002 and compared with published national data.
Methods: :
Discharge data of the year 2002 obtained from the Wisconsin Bureau of Health Statistics which includes data from all nonfederal hospitals and emergency departments in the state of Wisconsin was reviewed. ICD–9 CM codes 871.0–871.9 identified open globe injuries. External cause of disease (E codes) were used to determine the mechanism of injury. Incidence and rates were then calculated for sex, age, and mechanism of injury. Possible duplicates between emergency department visits and inpatients were removed.
Results: :
In 2002, there were 362 open globe injuries which presented to Wisconsin emergency departments and hospitals. The resulting incidence was 6.75/100,000 population which is almost twice that previously reported for the national data. Incidence was highest in men aged between 20–29 at 17.88/100,000 population but also peaked in the elderly. The most common mechanism of open globe injury was being struck by or against an object (32.0%). Other mechanisms included intraocular foreign body (27.1%), cut/pierce (17.1%), falls (6.1%), unspecified (4.4%), motor vehicle collisions (2.6%), injury caused by animals (2.4%), firearms (1.6%), All Terrain Vehicle accidents (1.3%) and human bites (1%). Assaults accounted for 6% of injuries while self inflicted injuries were 0.5%. Corresponding location code was available for 48 of 362 open globe injuries. Most common place of injury was at home (31.3%), followed by unspecified place (29.2), industry (12.5%), other specified place (12.5%), place of recreation/sport (4.2%), street/highway (4.2%), farm (2.1%), public building (2.1%), and residential institution (2.1%). Open globe injury due to being "struck by/against" was most common between ages 30–50. Foreign body injury was most likely for working age group of 20–50 year old, while "cut/pierce" mechanism peaked at ages 0–10 and 20–30 year old groups. Open globe injuries due to motor vehicle collisions peaked at ages of 20–40 year old.
Conclusions: :
This study reports the epidemiology of open globe injuries in Wisconsin and shows higher incidence of open globe injuries when compared to previous studies based on national statistics. Studies such as this may highlight at risk groups to target for prevention on local levels.
Keywords: trauma • clinical (human) or epidemiologic studies: prevalence/incidence