Pediatric Open Globe Injuries Caused by Firecrackers in a Tertiary Eye Care Hospital in Iran

ObjectiveThe aim of the study is to determine characteristic features of open globe injuries caused by firecrackers among pediatric population.MethodsIn this retrospective cross-sectional chart review, medical records of children with ocular trauma who were hospitalized in Isfahan, Iran, during 2013-2017 were reviewed. We analyzed the collected data before and after propensity score (PS) matching.ResultsOf 396 pediatric patients with open globe injury, 22 injuries (5.9%) were caused by firecrackers. Hyphema, iris prolapse, and lens rupture were noted in 15 (68.18%), 10 (45.45%), and 2 (9.09) eyes, respectively. None of patients had endophthalmitis. The mean age of patients in firecracker group was higher and significant (11.86 +/- 4.05 in firecracker vs 7.80 +/- 4.68 in nonfirecracker, P < 0.001). Furthermore, most boys were in firecracker group (95.5%, P = 0.005). Patients in firecracker group resided more in urban areas (86.4%, P = 0.054) and had more intraocular foreign body (IOFB) in the eyes (40.9%, P < 0.001). After PS matching, patients in firecracker group had higher IOFB (P = 0.008). In logistic regression models, patients with corneal lacerations had lower odds for long-time admission (>= 4 days) than patients with both corneal and scleral lacerations in crude model (odds ratio, 0.35; 95% confidence interval, 0.17-0.69) and adjusted model (odds ratio, 0.37; 95% CI, 0.18 to 0.74). After PS matching, there was no significant association between risk factors and outcomes.ConclusionsThe present study showed several differences between the pediatric open globe injuries caused by firecrackers and other mechanisms of injuries, including the age, sex, living place, presence of IOFB, and length of hospital stay.