Week in Review: Ocular Trauma and Legal Fireworks, Protective Effects of Subconjunctival Hemorrhage, Cork-Related Eye Injuries

A weekly roundup of ophthalmic news from around the web.

Does legalizing fireworks lead to more vision-threatening eye injuries? Possibly, say researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine, who conducted a case-control study of the incidence of ocular trauma cases treated at a level 1 trauma center during the 2-week period around the US Independence Day holiday, when fireworks-related trauma rates are highest. Data from 7 years were studied to determine whether the incidence of fireworks-related trauma was related to local fireworks bans, as the center treated patients from several different states. The likelihood of fireworks-related trauma was higher in patients who lived in areas where fireworks were legal (OR 2.0). However, other confounding factors increased the odds of fireworks-related injuries, including male sex (OR 3.3), age <18 years (OR 3.1), and living in a rural area (OR 7.6). Therefore, the authors conclude that "The design of this case-control study does not establish cause and effect but provides hypothesis-generating ideas to aid in future investigations of the association of legislation with the incidence of firework-related ocular injuries and vision threatening ocular trauma.” JAMA Ophthalmology

Having subconjunctival hemorrhage could be protective against other bleeding disorders. A South Korean study of more than 36,000 patients diagnosed with subconjunctival hemorrhage (SCH) during a 10-year period found that this group had lower incidence rates of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and major GI bleeding than a propensity score–matched control group. Results were the same following a subgroup analysis that excluded patients who had been exposed to anticoagulants. However, there were no significant differences in ICH and major bleeding incidence rates between patients with SCH and the general population. The authors note that their study "establishes an associative link rather than causality," and recommend additional studies that focus on potential biologic factors behind these findings. Scientific Reports

Enjoy the holidays, but watch out for flying corks. According to reports in the literature, the velocity of a sparkling wine cork released from its pressurized bottle is fast enough to cause lens dislocation, retinal detachment and hemorrhage, and other serious eye injuries. The complications from these injuries could lead to permanent damage, and even blindness in some cases. The safest method of opening a champagne or other sparkling wine bottle is to point the bottle away from yourself and others, and hold a towel over the cork while slowly twisting the bottle. The BMJ