Prognostic factors and visual outcome for fireworks-related burns during spring festival in South China

Firework related ocular injuries in Eastern India - A clinico-epidemiological analysis

Purpose

:Ocular trauma is one of the major preventable causes of ocular morbidity and blindness in children and young adults. Firework injuries account for 20% of ocular trauma. The purpose of this study was to describe the clinical profile and assess the severity of the ocular injuries sustained from fireworks in Eastern India mainly during the festive season.

Methods

:This was a retrospective, hospital-based case study of patients with ocular injuries sustained from fireworks during the year 2017-2020. The study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital in Eastern India. Demographic details, type of injury, duration of injury, visual status, diagnostic tests, and management were recorded.

Results

Sixty-five patients were reported to suffer from firework-related ocular injuries. The majority of cases were male (51/78.5%). The mean age was 21.78 ± 16.82 years (range: 0-90 years). Children and young adult males were mostly affected (n = 40, 61.5%). Most common offending agent was the bottle rockets (n = 23, 35.4%), followed by bomb and crackers in (n = 18, 27.7%). Majority of the injuries occurred at home environment (n = 37, 56.9%), followed by street (n = 15, 23.1%). About (n = 39, 60%) of the injuries occurred among bystanders. About 40 cases (61.5%) hailed from rural areas. The majority of the cases (n = 46, 70.8%) suffered from closed globe injuries and surgical intervention was required in (n = 40, 61.5%) of the cases. The mean length of hospital stay of fewer than 5 days was required in (n = 42, 64.6%). The final visual acuity of 6/18 or better was achieved in 41 cases (63.1%).

Conclusion

:Ocular injuries from fireworks remain a public health problem. Awareness among the masses, preventive measures, and strict implementation of government legislation may help in bringing down the incidence of firework-related ocular morbidity and blindness.

Assessment of Firework-Related Ocular Injury in the US

Importance

Fireworks are popularly used for recreation but can lead to potentially blinding injuries. Studies quantifying the trend and national prevalence of firework-related ocular injuries are limited.

Objective

To characterize firework-related ocular injuries treated in emergency departments (EDs) in the US from 1999 to 2017.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cross-sectional study used the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, a stratified probability sample of more than 100 hospital-affiliated US EDs representing more than 5300 nationwide hospitals. Deidentified individuals in the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System database who experienced eye injury due to fireworks between January 1, 1999, and December 31, 2017, were included. Analysis began February 2019.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Annual prevalence of firework-related ocular injury, firework type stratified by demographic information, diagnosis, event location/date, and patient disposition.

Results

A total of 34 548 firework-related ocular injuries were seen in US EDs during the 19-year study period (estimated from 1007 individuals in the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System database). Overall, 664 individuals (65.9%) were 18 years or younger, 724 (71.9%) were male, and 512 (50.8%) were white. Twenty-eight patients (2.8%) sustained a ruptured globe, while 633 (62.9%) sustained ocular burn injuries, 118 (11.7%) had ocular foreign bodies, 97 (9.6%) had conjunctival irritation, and 46 (4.6%) experienced other severe eye trauma. Of 1007 individuals, 911 (90.5%) were treated and released without transfer, while 87 (8.7%) required admission or transfer to another hospital. The most common specified firework types included firecrackers (193 [19.2%]), bottle rockets (177 [17.6%]), sparklers (88 [8.7%]), roman candles (66 [6.6%]), and novelty devices (65 [6.5%]) (eg, poppers and snappers). Bottle rockets disproportionately caused the most severe injuries, including ruptured globe (odds ratio, 5.82; 95% CI, 2.72-12.46; P < .001). A total of 411 cases (74.9%) occurred at home. Injuries most commonly occurred near the time of Independence Day and New Year's Day: 707 patients (70.2%) presented in July, 74 (7.4%) in June, 101 (10.0%) in January, and 47 (4.7%) in December.

Conclusions and Relevance

These findings support that firework-related ocular injuries range from mild irritation to ruptured globe, and most occur frequently in those who are young, male, and white. Focused preventive methods and regulations may be imperative in decreasing fireworks-related ocular morbidity, namely from bottle rockets and especially near national holidays.

A systematic review of ultrasound biomicroscopy use in pediatric ophthalmology

Ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) is the only available option for noninvasive, high-resolution imaging of the intricate iridociliary complex, and for anterior segment imaging with corneal haze or opacity. While these unique features render UBM essential for specific types of trauma, congenital anomalies, and anterior segment tumors, UBM imaging has found clinical utility in a broad spectrum of diseases for structural assessments not limited to the anterior intraocular anatomy, but also for eyelid and orbit anatomy. This imaging tool has a very specific niche in the pediatric population where anterior segment disease can be accompanied by corneal opacity or clouding, and anomalies posterior to the iris may be present. Pediatric patients present additional diagnostic challenges. They are often unable to offer detailed histories or fully cooperate with examination, thus amplifying the need for high-resolution imaging. This purpose of this systematic review is to identify and synthesize the body of literature involving use of UBM to describe, evaluate, diagnose, or optimize treatment of pediatric ocular disease. The collated peer-reviewed research details the utility of this imaging modality, clarifies the structures and diseases most relevant for this tool, and describes quantitative and qualitative features of UBM imaging among pediatric subjects. This summary will include information about the specific applications available to enhance clinical care for pediatric eye disease.

Changing Trends in Firework-Related Eye Injuries in Southern China: A 5-Year Retrospective Study of 468 Cases

Firework-related eye injury is a horrible medical problem and creates huge health and social burdens. Herein, we explored the changing trends and demographic and clinical features of firework-related eye injury, in an effort to inform strategies to prevent this injury. We reviewed the data of 468 hospitalized patients who underwent surgery for firework-related eye injury at the Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center between January 2013 and December 2017. During this period, the trend in firework-related eye injuries was stable (mean, 93 ± 14 cases per year), and fireworks were the major cause of explosive eye injury. The average age of the patients was 24 ± 18 years and 87% of the patients were male, with boys under 10 years of age comprising the largest group (27% of patients). There were an average of 24 ± 7 cases per year from urban areas and 70 ± 8 cases from rural areas (P < 0.05). Furthermore, 21 ± 5% of cases occurred during Spring Festival. After treatment, the best corrected visual acuity was increased compared to that before treatment, and the intraocular pressure tended to become normal by the final visit (P < 0.05). The top three diagnoses were cataract (39%), retinal detachment (18%), and choroidal detachment (14%). Additionally, the most common surgery was cataract extraction (25%), followed by pars plana vitrectomy (19%) and pars plana vitrectomy plus pars plana lensectomy (10%). Over the five-year study period, day surgery hospitalization increased from 1% to 32%. This was associated with a corresponding decrease in the length of hospitalization, without adverse events, demonstrating that day surgery is feasible in firework-related eye injury cases. The present study results suggest that greater attention should be paid to firework-related eye injury, and a variety of measures should be taken to prevent this kind of ocular tragedy.

Epidemiological characteristics and factors affecting length of hospital stay for children and adults with burns in Zunyi, China: a retrospective study

Objective

Burn wounds are a global public health problem, and a large number of casualties are caused by burns each year. In this study, we explored the epidemiological characteristics associated with burns and the factors affecting the length of hospital stay (LOS) in children and adults with burn wounds.

Methods

Records of patients with burns in the Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University from January 1, 2014 to August 31, 2016 were retrieved. Information on demographic characteristics, mechanism of burns, first treatment received, clinical details of burns, and LOS were extracted from hospital medical records.

Results

A total of 465 children and 327 adults with burns were identified over about 2.5 years. The ratio of male to female children with burn wounds was 1.6 and 2.3 in adults. The epidemiological characteristics of burns, including gender, season, location, etiology, degree and site, differed between children and adults. There were differences in external remedies used (e.g., traditional Chinese medicine powder) and wound protection (towels covering wounds) between children and adults, but few patients had both protected wounds and did not use external remedies. LOS was reduced with age (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.993) and skin grafting (HR = 0.339). LOS increased with the male gender (HR = 1.234), deep partial thickness burns (HR = 3.128), and full-thickness burns (HR = 1.791). LOS was increased when total body surface area (TBSA) of burns reached from 10% to 29% (HR = 3.978), when TBSA was greater than 30% (HR = 1.787), and heat vs. non-heat etiologies (HR = 1.497).

Conclusion

Our findings for the epidemiological characteristics of burns in children and adults in Zunyi will help with a targeted awareness campaign and improve knowledge of first-aid and wound treatment.

Epidemiology and outcome analysis of 6325 burn patients: a five-year retrospective study in a major burn center in Southwest China

Burns are a major cause of injury worldwide. We investigated the epidemiology and outcomes of burn patients in a major burn center in southwest China between 2011 and 2015 to provide guidance for burn prevention. Of the 6,325 included burn patients, 66.8% were male and 34.7% were 0 ~ 6 years old. The incidence of burns peaked in autumn. Scald was the most common cause of burns, which was predominant in patients aged 0 ~ 6 years. The mean total body surface area (TBSA) of burns was 13.4%, and patients with burns ≤10% TBSA comprised 64.1% of all cases. Patients with full-thickness burns accounted for 40.1% of all patients and 81.0% of operated patients; these burns were primarily caused by flame (34.8%), scald (21.0%), and electricity (20.4%). Fifty-six deaths occurred (mortality 0.9%), and risk factors included full-thickness burns, larger TBSA and older age. The median length of stay was 17 days, and major risk factors included more operations, better outcomes and larger TBSA. Our data showed that closer attention should be paid to children under 6 years old, males, incidents in autumn and scald burns to prevent burn injuries. Furthermore, individualized burn prevention and treatment measures based on related risk factors should be adopted.

Bilateral Vitreous Hemorrhage in Children: Clinical Features and Outcomes

Purpose:

To determine the etiology, clinical features and outcomes of bilateral vitreous hemorrhage (VH) in children.

Methods:

This retrospective chart review was performed on patients with bilateral VH under the age of 18 at a tertiary eye care center in India. Data included demographics, details of history and ocular examination, reports of investigations, surgeries or other interventions performed, and final anatomical and visual outcomes. Patients were divided into two groups i.e., traumatic and non-traumatic (spontaneous).

Results:

The traumatic group was comprised of 37 patients including 27 male and 10 female subjects with mean age of 13.47 ± 5.31 years, the most common complaint was decreased vision (96.45%) and the most prevalent etiology was firecracker injury in 16 (43.2%) patients. Mean baseline visual acuity (VA) was 2.34 ± 1.31 logMAR which was significantly improved to 1.08 ± 0.23 logMAR (P = 0.042). The mean number of surgeries was 2.72 ± 1.43 in the traumatic VH and mean follow up period was 23.14 ± 6.54 months. The spontaneous group included 48 subjects comprised of 27 male and 21 female cases with mean age of 14.48 ± 2.03 years. The most common cause was vasculitis in 21 (43.75%) subjects including four patients with tuberculosis. Mean baseline VA was 1.97 ± 1.13 logMAR which showed a significant improvement to 0.82 ± 0.24 logMAR (P = 0.012) after mean follow up of 34.2 ± 11.2 months. Eleven patients required at least one major surgery.

Conclusion:

Vasculitis was the most common cause of spontaneous bilateral VH; traumatic VH most prevalently occurred due to firecracker injury. Final VA was better in the spontaneous group.

Crash and Burn: Ocular Injuries due to Fireworks

PURPOSE

To identify the patterns of ocular injury and to determine ocular morbidity resulting from the use of firecrackers.

METHODS

A prospective observational study of all patients presenting with ocular trauma consequent to fireworks usage in a tertiary eye care center in South India over a one-month period around the autumn festival of Diwali. We also reviewed the published literature from around the world reporting ocular injuries due to firecrackers.

RESULT

49 patients were included in the study, out of which the vast majority (40/81%) were males. The mean age was 17 years. Almost an equal number of bystanders (24/48.9%) was affected as compared to people handling the fireworks (25/51%). 13 (26.53%) patients had open-globe injury whereas 33 (67.34%) patients had closed-globe injury. Twenty-two (44.8%) patients underwent surgical intervention. Eighteen (36.7%) patients had final vision less then 20/40 (range = 20/50 to No Perception of Light) with eight patients having no perception of light in the affected eye.

CONCLUSION

Unregulated use of firecrackers can lead to significant ocular morbidity, mainly involving children, young males, and even innocent bystanders. A combination of public awareness and appropriate legislative laws should be formulated regarding the use of fireworks to decrease the load of needless blindness on society.