Abstract
Purpose :
Eye pain is a common reason for healthcare visits, but national estimates regarding the frequency of presentations and patterns of care are unknown. Our objective was to describe eye pain visits in the United States occurring in the ambulatory or emergency department (ED) setting to help guide research and clinical efforts.
Methods :
The study was designed as a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis of National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey and National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey data from 2008-2019. The study examined a population-based sample of ambulatory clinics and EDs, and the participants were patients with eye pain. Sample data were weighted to estimate ambulatory and ED eye pain presentations. Weighted proportions of patient and provider characteristics, diagnoses, and disposition were calculated.
Results :
From 2008-2019, there were 4.1 million (95% CI: 3,523,144, 4,705,344) ambulatory and 1 million (95% CI: 812,590,1,014,934) ED eye pain visits annually. Nearly half of ambulatory visits were for chronic eye pain (1.7 million [95% CI: 1,433,244,1,956,524]). Eye pain was the primary reason for the visit in 47.12% (95% CI: 43.05%, 51.18%) of ambulatory and 69.47% (95% CI: 65.80%, 71.13%) of ED eye pain visits. It was the only reason for the visit in 20.58% (95% CI: 17.11%, 24.05%) of ambulatory and 33.93% (95% CI: 30.25%, 37.61%) of ED eye pain encounters. In the ambulatory setting, most (48.18% [95% CI: 42.32%, 54.03%) visits were conducted by ophthalmologists. None of the top 10 most common primary diagnoses recorded for ambulatory eye pain visits were acutely vision threatening. In the ED setting, the most common diagnosis was injury of conjunctiva and corneal abrasion w/o foreign body (ICD10: S050). Follow-up was scheduled in 86.89% [95%CI: 82.11%, 91.68%] of acute vs 93.27% [95% CI: 89.89%, 96.64%] of chronic eye pain visits.
Conclusions :
Most eye pain visits take place in the outpatient setting with ophthalmologists and visits for chronic eye pain are common. In nearly half of these visits, eye pain is the primary reason for seeking care. Vision-threatening diagnoses are uncommon for ambulatory visits but common for ED visits. Future studies should aim to define healthcare utilization over time, patient outcomes, and the association of practice patterns with outcomes to optimize care for patients with eye pain.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.