Characteristics of Ophthalmologic Consultations and Hospital Admissions in the Emergency Department of a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Retrospective Study

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the characteristics of ophthalmologic consultations, demographic data of patients, and reasons for hospital admission among patients presenting with ophthalmologic complaints to the emergency department (ED) of a tertiary care hospital. Method: This retrospective study included 3,617 patients with ocular complaints. The patients presented to a tertiary care ED in Istanbul between August 2021 and August 2022. The hospital’s automation system was used to evaluate emergency ophthalmologic consultations. Results: The mean age of the patients was 42.17 ± 16.60 years, and 66.8% were male. The majority of visits (63.9%) occurred outside of working hours. Of these, 1,642 (45.4%) patients presented due to trauma. Intraocular foreign bodies were detected in 2,419 patients (66.9%). Among non-traumatic conditions, conjunctivitis (26.6%), subconjunctival hemorrhage (8.9%), and blepharitis (3.3%) were the most common diagnoses. A total of 91 patients (2.5%) were admitted to the ophthalmology department. The hospital admission rate was higher among older patients, those with non-traumatic conditions, and those without a foreign body. Conclusion: Our study highlights the predominance of non-emergent consultations among ophthalmologic cases. It underscores the need for improved triage protocols to optimize consultations. Further research is required to enhance ophthalmologic case management and patient referral systems to optimize emergency care resources.