Epidemiology of Pediatric Open Globe Injury in the United States

Purpose: To use the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) Database to describe trends in demographics, types, and incidence of pediatric open globe injuries in the United States. Methods: A retrospective, cross-sectional, observational study was conducted of 8,943 acute cases of pediatric open globe injury (age < 21 years) obtained from the NIS Database, between 2002 and 2014. Weighted analysis was performed using IBM SPSS Statistics 25 software (IBM Corporation). Codes from the International Classification of Disease , Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification were used to identify pediatric open globe injury cases. Results: In the United States, 8,943 pediatric cases of acute open globe injuries were identified between 2002 and 2014. Males comprised 78% of the acute pediatric open globe injury cases. Penetrating open globe injuries without intraocular foreign bodies (IOFBs) were the most common type of injury ( P < .001). The proportion of injuries that were penetrating open globe injuries decreased with age, whereas the proportion of IOFBs and globe ruptures increased. The proportion of open globe injuries with IOFB in boys was twice as high as in girls. The incidence of open globe injuries by age, race, and gender was highest in the 16 to 20 years age group, in Blacks and Native Americans, and in boys, respectively. Conclusions: The incidence of open globe injuries in pediatric patients (age < 21 years) was estimated to be 7.93 per 1,000,000 individuals and varied by race, gender, and age. The proportion of different types of open globe injury varied significantly by age, race, and gender. The mean duration of hospital stay for open globe injury management was 2.2 days, and 17.5% of patients lacked medical insurance. [ J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus . 2021;58(4):232–239.]