Characteristics of Ophthalmic Trauma in Fall-Related Hospitalizations in the United States from 2000 to 2017.

PURPOSE

Falls is a leading cause of injuries nationally and can lead to serious ophthalmic injuries. The purpose of this study is to examine the incidence and characteristics of ophthalmic trauma in patients with fall-related hospitalizations in the United States.

METHODS

Retrospective, cross-sectional study. National Inpatient Sample (NIS) was queried to identify all ophthalmic trauma associated with fall-related hospitalizations from 2000 to 2017. Patients were identified using relevant International Classification of Diseases (ICD) codes. National estimates, annual incidences and characteristics were produced from trend weights provided by the NIS sampling frame and population data from the US Census Bureau.

RESULTS

There were 21,415,120 fall-related hospitalizations of which 425,725 (2.0%) had ophthalmic trauma. Ophthalmic injury incidence increased from 4.26 to 14.31 per 100,000 population ( < .01) from 2000 to 2017. Mean (±SEM) age was 69.2 ± 20.1 years and 56.9% were females. Of the patients with specified fall mechanism, the most common mechanisms were tripping or stumbling (48.0%), falls related to furniture (18.3%), and falls related to stairs (16.3%). The most common ophthalmic injuries were contusions of the eye and adnexa including hyphema and commotio retinae (50.1%), orbital fractures (20.7%), and eyelid lacerations (14.9%).

CONCLUSIONS

Incidence of ophthalmic trauma in patients with fall-related hospitalizations has increased and our study provides valuable information for targeting preventive measures particularly for the elderly and falls due to tripping, stairs, and furniture related accidents. The most common associated ophthalmic injuries are contusions, orbital fractures and eyelid lacerations.