Evisceration and enucleation strongly linked to ocular injuries from IEDs

Ocular injuries caused by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are strongly associated with severe ocular damage repaired by evisceration or enucleation, states an investigation published in Eye.

Dr F.C. Erdurman et al., Department of Ophthalmology, Gulhane Military Medical Academy and School of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey, conducted a retrospective review of 61 eyes of 39 patients who had suffered from ocular injuries caused by IEDs. The average patient age was 24 years and the average follow-up was 6 months. Of the patients studied, 49 eyes had open-globe injuries and 12 eyes had closed-globe injuries.

The results showed that eyes with open-globe injury experienced a higher rate of intraocular foreign body (IOFB) injury with 76% of eyes presenting with it. Evisceration or enucleation as a primary surgical intervention was needed in 28% of eyes and 36% of eyes presented with no light perception.

At the final follow-up 43% of eyes demonstrated no light perception. In eyes that underwent vitreoretinal surgery 50% of them developed postoperative proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR). Postoperative PVR was identified as the most frequent cause of poor visual outcome.