Epidemiology of consumer product-related eye injuries in the United States

Background: Each year, more than 2.5 million eye injuries occur in the United States (US). Consumer products (CPs) are an important cause of eye injuries and contribute more than 210,000 eye injury visits annually in the US. However, the current characteristics of CP-related eye injuries are not well-described in the US population. The purpose of this study is to describe the epidemiology of CP-related eye injuries presenting to US emergency departments (EDs). Methods: The Consumer Product Safety Commission's National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (CPSC-NEISS) database was used to derive national, weighted estimates of nonfatal Emergency Department (ED) visits for eye injuries by patients' age, gender, diagnosis, injured body part, locale of incidence, and related CP. Results: Males comprised 69% of all eye injury visits. Patients aged 0-4 represented the age interval with the highest rate of injury (92 injuries per 10,000). The CPs causing the highest proportion of injuries varied among the different age groups; leading CP categories included chemicals, sports-related products, construction/cutting tools, and household items. Contusions and abrasions were the leading eye injury diagnoses (44%), followed by foreign body injuries (19%). Conclusion: This study identified the CPs responsible for the most eye injury visits by age groups. This information will aid in devising more effective age-appropriate injury prevention strategies to encourage the use of protective eyewear while working with higher risk CPs.