Injuries related to wearing glasses sent an estimated 27,000 people to the emergency department in 2002 and 2003, a new study suggests.
Injuries related to wearing glasses sent an estimated 27,000 people to the emergency department in 2002 and 2003, a new study suggests.
But the researchers say that such eye injuries could be avoided if people would wear protective eyeglasses during activities that put them at high risk of eye injury.
“We also found that injuries related to wearing glasses vary by age and gender,” said Huiyun Xiang, a study co-author and an assistant professor of pediatrics at Ohio State University.
For example, people 65 and older were much more likely than younger adults to fall and hit their head, thus causing a glasses-related injury. Sports-related eyeglass injuries were more common in children 17 and younger.
The researchers also found that injuries to the eyeball were much more prominent among people age 18 to 64, compared to children and older adults.
“Injuries related to eyeglasses represent a significant public health problem in all age groups, but eye injuries among working-age adults are one of the leading causes of blindness,” said Xiang, who is also an investigator with the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Columbus Children's Research Institute.
Some 96 million people in the United States wear prescription glasses.
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