Primary causes of emergency ophthalmological consultations at a tertiary care institution in Colombia

Abstract

Introduction. Several ophthalmological conditions are causes of consultations to the emergency services. The objective of this study was to determine the most common causes of consultation to the ophthalmological emergency service of a tertiary institution in Colombia and thus be able to explore in the future the possibility of identifying some preventive measures aimed at reducing the frequency of these causes. Methodology. Retrospective descriptive study based on the records of patients attending the emergency department during 2014 and 2015, identifying the diseases based on the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) codes. Results. 9,088 and 8,162 records were identified for 2014 and 2015, respectively. The most frequent causes of ophthalmologic urgency consultation for the year 2014 were: corneal or conjunctive foreign body with 20.2 %, acute conjunctivitis not specified 11.3 %, conjunctival trauma and corneal abrasion 8.3 %, conjunctival haemorrhage 5.8 % and corneal burns 4.7 %. In 2015 the causes were: foreign body in the cornea or conjunctiva (23.6 %), conjunctival trauma and corneal abrasion (9.0 %), acute unspecified conjunctivitis (8.9 %), conjunctival hemorrhage (4.4 %), and corneal burns (4.0 %). Discussion. The most frequent causes of consultation with ophthalmologic emergencies included trauma and infections of the anterior segment of the eye. Conclusions. There is a possibility of identifying some preventive measures (adequate protection elements, behavior protocols in situations of risk, etc.) that help to reduce the frequency of eye traumas and minimize the risk of infections. There is room for more studies in which the specific mechanisms of these injuries are analyzed.

Keywords

• Urgencias Médicas
• Oftalmología
• Quemadura Oculares
• Enfermedades de la Córnea
• Lesiones Oculares
• Cuerpos Extraños en el Ojo
• Conjuntivitis