Visual disability in selected acts of terror, warfare, and natural disasters of the last 25 years: A concise narrative review

Abstract

Objective: A review of ocular injury related to mass disaster over the past 25 years, including injury type, treatment, and final visual outcome.Design: Retrospective review.Main Outcome Measures: Injury types, treatment, and final visual acuity.Results: Acts of terror and war result in significant and increasingly more common ocular injury. Natural disasters were much less likely to cause lasting or permanent injury.Conclusions: Final visual acuity was rarely reported. Primary prevention is superior to treatment in acts of war and terror. Ocular injury is rarely reported by first response to natural disaster.