Abstract

SANCHEZ TOCINO, H et al. Epidemiology study of ocular emergencies in a general hospital. Arch Soc Esp Oftalmol [online]. 2004, vol.79, n.9, pp.425-432. ISSN 0365-6691.

Purpose: To provide epidemiological data about patients attending an ophthalmic emergencies center of a general hospital. Methods: A retrospective analysis of all patients attending the emergency department (ED) of Rio Hortega Hospital during a 9-month period was carried out. Pathology was identified by International Classification of Diseases ((ICD9-CM) codes. Results: A total of 2914 visits have been examined: 6% of patients were under 20 years of age, 35.4% between 21-50, 29% between 51-70, and 23.3% over 71 years. Thirteen per cent of visits were due to injuries, 50.7% of which occurred in patients 21 to 50 years old. Almost half of visits were due to inflammatory conditions of the cornea, conjunctiva and eyelids. Conclusions: ED plays a major role in the ophthalmology departments in a hospital. Certainly a considerable proportion of these patients had conditions which could have been dealt with in an ophthalmic outpatient clinic or by general practitioners. Ocular trauma is a common cause of visits to the ED.

Keywords : Ophthalmic emergencies; ocular trauma; emergency department.