Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

<h4>Background</h4>Ocular emergencies (OE) include ocular trauma, infections, retinal detachment, and uveitis. Due to the limited number of studies describing ocular emergencies requiring Emergency Department (ED) visits in Saudi Arabia, there is a need for further studies addressing thi...

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Main Authors: Abdulmohsen Alshammari, Naif Alqadhy, Abdulaziz Gharawi, Bader Alqahtani, Saif Alagha, Mohammed AlShenaiber, Fahad Almalik, Abdullah Alshibani
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2024-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310179
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author Abdulmohsen Alshammari
Naif Alqadhy
Abdulaziz Gharawi
Bader Alqahtani
Saif Alagha
Mohammed AlShenaiber
Fahad Almalik
Abdullah Alshibani
author_facet Abdulmohsen Alshammari
Naif Alqadhy
Abdulaziz Gharawi
Bader Alqahtani
Saif Alagha
Mohammed AlShenaiber
Fahad Almalik
Abdullah Alshibani
author_sort Abdulmohsen Alshammari
collection DOAJ
description <h4>Background</h4>Ocular emergencies (OE) include ocular trauma, infections, retinal detachment, and uveitis. Due to the limited number of studies describing ocular emergencies requiring Emergency Department (ED) visits in Saudi Arabia, there is a need for further studies addressing this topic. Therefore, this study aimed to assess and describe the incidence, clinical presentation, and causes of ocular-related ED visits at a tertiary hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.<h4>Methods</h4>This was a retrospective cohort study. Medical records were reviewed for all patients (all age groups) patients presenting at the ED from 1 January 2019 to 31 October 2023 where data for patients with any ocular emergency was extracted using an Excel sheet. Data analysis was performed using RStudio (R version 4.3.1). Baseline information was described using frequencies and proportions. Types of Ocular emergencies were described using the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes and presented using frequencies and proportions. The distribution of ocular emergencies across months and age groups was expressed using chart figures.<h4>Results</h4>A total of 15,321 ocular-related ED visits were included in this study. Almost 51% of patients were males. The mean age at diagnosis was 25.5 ± 22.1 years. More than half of the patients (51.0%) were diagnosed during childhood (<18 years), while proportions of older ages declined gradually. Average presentations of ocular emergencies in a single month ranged from 200 to 400. Conjunctival disorders including conjunctivitis (29.8%) were the most frequent ocular emergencies.<h4>Conclusion</h4>The findings of this study showed that ocular emergencies are more prevalent in younger patients (aged <18 years), more commonly due to conjunctivitis. This highlights the need for policymakers to assess the causes of such emergency in this population and implement prevention strategies. Moreover, an average of 200 to 400 emergency visits per month are ocular-related. This finding could help policymakers understand the burden of ocular emergencies on the ED and the pressure that could add to the ED staff to provide appropriate care for these patients.
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spelling doaj-art-4e7ccbe399b74c2a93304875df4c35072024-11-19T05:31:48ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032024-01-011911e031017910.1371/journal.pone.0310179Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.Abdulmohsen AlshammariNaif AlqadhyAbdulaziz GharawiBader AlqahtaniSaif AlaghaMohammed AlShenaiberFahad AlmalikAbdullah Alshibani<h4>Background</h4>Ocular emergencies (OE) include ocular trauma, infections, retinal detachment, and uveitis. Due to the limited number of studies describing ocular emergencies requiring Emergency Department (ED) visits in Saudi Arabia, there is a need for further studies addressing this topic. Therefore, this study aimed to assess and describe the incidence, clinical presentation, and causes of ocular-related ED visits at a tertiary hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.<h4>Methods</h4>This was a retrospective cohort study. Medical records were reviewed for all patients (all age groups) patients presenting at the ED from 1 January 2019 to 31 October 2023 where data for patients with any ocular emergency was extracted using an Excel sheet. Data analysis was performed using RStudio (R version 4.3.1). Baseline information was described using frequencies and proportions. Types of Ocular emergencies were described using the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) codes and presented using frequencies and proportions. The distribution of ocular emergencies across months and age groups was expressed using chart figures.<h4>Results</h4>A total of 15,321 ocular-related ED visits were included in this study. Almost 51% of patients were males. The mean age at diagnosis was 25.5 ± 22.1 years. More than half of the patients (51.0%) were diagnosed during childhood (<18 years), while proportions of older ages declined gradually. Average presentations of ocular emergencies in a single month ranged from 200 to 400. Conjunctival disorders including conjunctivitis (29.8%) were the most frequent ocular emergencies.<h4>Conclusion</h4>The findings of this study showed that ocular emergencies are more prevalent in younger patients (aged <18 years), more commonly due to conjunctivitis. This highlights the need for policymakers to assess the causes of such emergency in this population and implement prevention strategies. Moreover, an average of 200 to 400 emergency visits per month are ocular-related. This finding could help policymakers understand the burden of ocular emergencies on the ED and the pressure that could add to the ED staff to provide appropriate care for these patients.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310179
spellingShingle Abdulmohsen Alshammari
Naif Alqadhy
Abdulaziz Gharawi
Bader Alqahtani
Saif Alagha
Mohammed AlShenaiber
Fahad Almalik
Abdullah Alshibani
Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
PLoS ONE
title Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
title_full Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
title_fullStr Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
title_full_unstemmed Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
title_short Characteristics of ocular-related emergency department visits: Five-years data from a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
title_sort characteristics of ocular related emergency department visits five years data from a tertiary care center in riyadh saudi arabia
url https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310179
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