Ophthalmology
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Comparative Study
Comparing the Management of Eye Injuries by Coalition Military Surgeons during the Iraq and Afghanistan Conflicts.
To compare incidences, ocular injury types, and treatment performed on United States and United Kingdom military service members and host nation civilians within the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts to inform future military surgical training requirements and military medical planning. The United States routinely deployed ophthalmologists, whereas the United Kingdom did not. ⋯ Eye injuries were more likely to have been treated definitively in United States Medical Treatment Facilities (MTFs), reflecting the absence of ophthalmologists in most deployed United Kingdom MTFs. The Iraq and Afghan conflicts were notable for coalition air dominance; the shape of future conflicts may mandate delays in evacuation, which may affect visual outcomes negatively, particularly if primary repair of patients with open-globe injuries is delayed. This study provides evidence to support the maintenance of specialist ophthalmic surgical competencies in deployed coalition MTFs for future conflicts.