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Ocular Trauma

Boonkit Purt, MD and Brittany E Powell, MD Reviewed 06/2022
 


BASICS

Ocular trauma is a leading cause of vision loss in the developed world though loss of the eye, cataract, glaucoma, retinal damage, or damage to other ocular structures. Ophthalmic trauma is bro...

DIAGNOSIS

A high suspicion for ocular trauma is key to the diagnosis and immediate initiation of treatment.  

HISTORY

  • Mechanism of injury? E.g., hammering a nail into wood suggests that a piece of the n...

TREATMENT

Open globe 
  • Consult ophthalmology emergently.

  • Administer antibiotics immediately (IV preferred, oral if IV not available).

ONGOING CARE

PATIENT EDUCATION

  • Patients should be advised to wear safety glasses.

  • Any patient with a globe injury will need continued monitoring by an ophthalmologist.

PROGNOSIS

The patient’s presenting v...

REFERENCES

1
Iftikhar M, Latif A, Farid UZ, et al. Changes in the incidence of eye trauma hospitalizations in the United States from 2001 through 2014. JAMA Ophthalmol. 2019;137(1):48–56. doi: 10.1001/...

ADDITIONAL READING

  • Boyette JR, Pemberton JD, Bonilla-Velez J. Management of orbital fractures: challenges and solutions. Clin Ophthalmol. 2015;9:2127–37. doi: 10.2147/OPTH.S80463....

CODES

CLINICAL PEARLS

  • Maintain a high suspicion and initiate treatment immediately. 

  • Obtain appropriate imaging to evaluate for intracranial trauma, intraocular foreign body, or orbital bone fractures.

  • Treat ...

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