Eye injuries in children the Sagamu experience

Abstract

Objective: To describe the pattern of eye injuries in children at Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OOUTH), Sagamu, Nigeria. Methods: The records of all children 16years and below presenting with eye injuries to the Eye clinic between January 2007 and December 2011 were reviewed retrospectively. Demographic data, cause of injury, time of presentation, the injured eye, visual acuity at presentation, diagnosis, intraocular pressure, treatment given, post treatment visual acuities at one week, one month and three months were obtained and analyzed using SPSS version 16. Results: A total of 131 case notes were available for analysis. The age range of affected children was 9months to16 years: mean SD) - 8.56years(4.18).The male female ratio was 2:1. The majority of affected children were age 6- 10 years. The right eye was involved in 55.7% of cases. The most common agent of injury was stick (22.1%), followed by slap. Conclusion: Intensifying health education to the children, parents and teachers will go a long way in reducing ocular injuries and vision loss in children.