Aim:

To assess the epidemiology and prognostic factors of pediatric ocular traumas.

Materials and Methods:

This retrospective study included 258 eyes of 248 patients between 0-16 years of age who were presented to ophthalmology clinic of our hospital between November 2008 and November 2013. Age, gender, type and cause of the trauma, time elapsed from the onset of the trauma to admission to the hospital, intraocular pressure, initial and final visual acuities were obtained from the medical records of patients. McNemar and Chi-square tests were used in statistical analyses.

Results:

In the 258 eyes included in the study, the male to female ratio was approximately 1.3:1, and most were 7 to 12 years old. Non-perforating trauma in the anterior segment was the most common type of injury (88.3%). After the treatment, best corrected visual acuity was 0.5 or better in 70% of the patients, while it was 0.05 or worse in 14%. Follow-up period was ranged from 1 day to 36 months. Endophthalmitis was detected in 4 patients (1.55%) and intraocular foreign body was detected in 4 patients. Toys were the most frequent cause of trauma in children under 6 years of age while it was stone and wood in those over 6 years of age. Diagnoses, therapies implemented, ocular complications, and outcomes were reported.

Conclusion:

Unilateral blindness in childhood due to ocular traumas is avoidable and its incidence could be markedly reduced by emphasizing an information strategy and education based on prevention of ocular trauma. Thus more adequate adult supervision and educational and legislative measures are necessary and useful in order to reduce prevalence and morbidity of these accidents.

Keywords: Child, eye trauma, epidemiology, visual acuity