ABSTRACT
Ocular trauma is a common civilian injury, affecting up to 20% of the population at some point in their life. Ocular trauma also affects military patients, frequently dependent on the use of combat eye protection, at 10–15% of combat-related injuries during Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Prolonged Field Care (PFC) is described within United States (US) doctrine as ‘field medical care, applied beyond doctrinal planning timelines’, and culminates in evacuation to a higher-level medical treatment facility (MTFs). The key pathology to recognise after ocular trauma are chemical injury, open globe injury, orbital compartment syndrome, hyphaemia and retinal detachment or dialysis. The critical feature of an eye examination is an assessment of function, which includes best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) and testing of pupils with the swinging flashlight test. Orbital compartment syndrome is a diagnosis made after assessment, but suspicion should be raised if the lids are severely bruised and/or swollen and difficult to open.
