Nearly two million Americans are treated for eye injuries per year, with males experiencing twice the rate of injury than that of females, according to a study in the July issue of Archives of Ophthalmology.
Because eye injuries are rarely serious enough to require hospitalization, to understand the extent of eye injuries in the U.S., inpatient and outpatient facilities, in addition to other settings, must be considered, according to background information in the article.
Gerald McGwin, Jr., M.S., Ph.D., from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and colleagues combined data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, and the National Hospital Discharge Survey for 2001, to estimate eye injuries in the U.S. Eye injuries treated in emergency departments, inpatient and outpatient facilities, and private physicians' offices, as well as their causes and characteristics, were included in the study.