Mechanical Ocular Trauma in Children

Ocular trauma is the major cause of unilateral blindness in children (Strahlman et al., Arch Ophthalmol 108:603–606, 1990; May et al., Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol 238:153–157, 2000). Seven to thirteen percent of the patients who suffer from ocular trauma have a significant lower vision and blindness (Sherwin et al., Eye 25:256–257, 2011; Salvin, Curr Opin Ophthalmol 18:366–372, 2007). Thirty-five percent of approximately 2.5 million ocular injuries were encountered in children younger than 17 years old (Salvin, Curr Opin Ophthalmol 18:366–372, 2007). In Nepal, incidence of ocular trauma (cases that did not require hospitalization were included) was estimated as 300 per 100,000 per year (Khatry et al., Br J Ophthalmol 88:456–460, 2004). The incidence of hospitalization due to ocular trauma varies from 8.85 to 22.5 per 100,000 per year (MacEwen et al., Br J Ophthalmol 83:933–936, 1999; Karaman et al., Ophthalmic Res 42:199–204, 2009).