GOLF-RELATED OCULAR INJURIES

Objective: To review golf-related ocular injuries, which account for 1 .5% to 5.6% of all sports injuries. Methods: During 8 years (1986 to 1 994), a retrospective review of sports-related trauma was performed at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. Eight blunt ocular injur ies (four ruptured globes and four globes without rupture) caused by g olf-related activities were identified, The four ruptured globes cause d by golf-related trauma accounted for 1.2% of all penetrating injurie s and/or ruptured globes and 11.7% of sports-related injuries. Results : A golf ball projectile was the mechanism of injury in six patients, while two patients were struck with a golf club. The four patients wit h ruptured globes had an initial visual acuity oflight perception or w orse, and three globes were subsequently enucleated, while one was pre phthisic. In the four trauma cases without rupture, surgical intervent ion was required to achieve anatomic stability, with final visual acui ties ranging from 20/25 to 20/40. Conclusions: The incidence of ocular injuries caused by golf-related trauma is low compared with that for other sports-related injuries. Although the prognosis for ruptured glo bes occurring in this setting remains extremely guarded, blunt trauma without rupture caused by a golf-related injury is associated with a m ore favorable visual and anatomic outcome.