Ocular Trauma During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to summarize the latest literature on the trends and incidence of ocular trauma during the COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN: Systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: A systematic literature search was conducted to identify the relevant literature. The search period was between January 1, 2020, and September 20, 2021. The incidence of overall and various types of ocular trauma during the COVID-19 pandemic and the control period was analyzed. The data from different studies were pooled. The odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated. RESULTS: A total of 32 articles were included. After pooling the data from all included studies, the incidence of total and pediatric ocular trauma during the COVID-19 pandemic was 67.7% and 54.3% of those in the control period, respectively. However, the proportion of ocular trauma in eye emergency visits increased during the pandemic (OR, 95% CI: 1.46, 1.04-2.06). The proportion of domestic ocular trauma increased (OR, 95% CI: 3.42, 1.01-11.62), while ocular trauma related to sports and outdoor activities and occupational ocular trauma decreased (OR, 95% CI: 0.64, 0.09-4.29 and 0.18, 0.10-0.33, respectively). It was also reported that chemical injury caused by alcohol-based sanitizers, photokeratitis caused by ultraviolet lamps, and mechanical eye injury caused by masks increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. CONCLUSIONS: There was a reduction in overall eye injuries and substantial differences in the spectrum of ocular trauma during the COVID-19 pandemic. Proper health education and supervision should be strengthened to prevent ocular injuries related to COVID-19 preventive interventions.

COVID-19: Update on Its Ocular Involvements, and Complications From Its Treatments and Vaccinations.

ABSTRACT: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) came under the attention of the international medical community when China first notified the World Health Organization of a pneumonia outbreak of then-unknown etiology in Wuhan in December 2019. Since then, COVID-19 caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has appalled the world by spreading at a pandemic speed. Although ophthalmologists do not directly engage in the clinical care of COVID-19 patients, the ophthalmology community has become aware of the close ties between its practice and the pandemic. Not only are ophthalmologists at heightened risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure due to their physical proximity with patients in routine ophthalmic examinations, but SARS-CoV-2 possesses ocular tropism resulting in ocular complications beyond the respiratory tract after viral exposure. Furthermore, patients could potentially suffer from adverse ocular effects in the therapeutic process. This review summarized the latest literature to cover the ophthalmic manifestations, effects of treatments, and vaccinations on the eye to aid the frontline clinicians in providing effective ophthalmic care to COVID-19 patients as the pandemic continues to evolve.

Death tolls of COVID-19: Where come the fallacies and ways to make them more accurate.

The death toll of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) sparked much controversy since its advent in December 2019. Underestimation because of under testing and deaths happening outside the hospitals were important causes. Bold revisions of the diagnostic criteria leading to dramatic changes in death tolls by different governments were observed in attempts to generate more accurate estimates. On the other hand, the influence, censorship and manipulation on case and death data from top political leaders of some countries could create important impacts on the death toll. Baseline mortality data of previous years may help make more accurate estimates of the actual death toll. The pitfalls and strategies during such processes could become valuable lessons to leaders and policymakers worldwide as more accurate statistics serve to navigate policies to combat this pandemic in the days and months to come.