Changing Trend of Ocular Trauma during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Lockdown in Kaduna, Nigeria

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown on the demographic and clinical profile of patients presenting with ocular trauma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective comparative cross-sectional study of ocular trauma patients managed in the emergency department (ED) from 26 March 2020 to 31 June 2020 and the similar period in 2019. The differences in patients' data (age, presenting visual acuity, mechanism of injury, location of injury, class of trauma, presentation time post-injury and ocular interventions) were compared. RESULTS: There were 50 trauma patients pre-COVID-19 and 83 patients at lockdown with a trauma prevalence of 1.2% and 2.0%, respectively. The mean age of patients was 21.7 ± 18.8 and 21.1 ± 13.9 years pre-COVID-19 and at lockdown (P = 0.084). During lockdown, the proportion of children with eye injuries decreased from 58% to 50%, also patients with presenting visual acuity worse than 6/60 decreased from 70% to 60.3%. Regarding the mechanism of trauma, there was an increase in the percentage of domestic injuries, vegetative matter implicated and open globe injury (respectively from 44% to 62.7%, from 16% to 32.5% and from 36% to 41%). Injury-to-treatment time was longer during the lockdown. Presentation to the ED within 24 hours of injury reduced to 28.9% from 44% (P = 0.035). More patients (59%) were managed conservatively at lockdown compared to 46% pre-COVID-19 (P = 0.004). CONCLUSION: The number and prevalence of ocular injuries increased during the COVID-19 lockdown. Injuries were more severe, mainly domestic and vegetative matter was most implicated. Patients presented later to the hospital and were mostly managed conservatively during the lockdown.