Abstract

Background: A chemical injury is the outcome of exposure of the eyes to a chemical substance that exceeds the protective mechanisms of the eyes. An ocular involvement constitutes a third of the burn patients. The majority of them are due to chemical exposure. The high prevalence of chemical injuries and being a true emergency they require proper evaluation andmanagement.

Method: An observational descriptive cross-sectional institutional – based study was conducted from May 2023 to July 2023. A total of 355 participants were included in this study from PHC centers and hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Data was collected using data collecting sheets and self-administered questionnaires. The data was entered and analyzed using SPSS version 23.

Results: In our study, knowledge regarding signs of severe injury were assessed. Only 53 and 51 emergency medicine and family medicine physicians, respectively, answered correctly about the most common early symptoms of chemical injury (P=0.011). However, there was a significant difference (P= 0.001) regarding the most important sign that indicates the urgency of treatment as 52 respondents recognized the warning sign; 28 of them were emergency medicine doctors. Regarding the practice of emergency, no significant difference was found between the respondents of the two specialties. The level of knowledge regarding ocular chemical injury showed that ER consultant (19.05%), ER specialist (19.25%), family medicine consultant (26.45%), family medicine specialist (18.75%), R1 ER (21.45%), R1 family medicine (16.65%), R2 ER (25%), R2 family medicine (15.20%), R3 ER (36.65%), R3 family medicine (25%) R4 ER (30.80%), R4 family medicine (21.05%) respectively have different levels of knowledge. The highest level of knowledge was R3 ER residents while the lowest level was R2 family medicine residents. While the level of practice regarding ocular chemical injury showed that ER consultant (35.70%), ER specialist (37.17%), family medicine consultant (37.27%), family medicine specialist (25.53%), R1 ER (28.58%), R1 family medicine (28.90%), R2 ER (33.98%), R2 family medicine (28.98%), R3 ER (31.10%), R3 family medicine (29.63%) R4 ER (34.63%), R4 family medicine (36.83%) respectively know the correct practice towards ocular chemical injury. The highest percentage was family consultants while the lowest percentage was family medicine specialists.

Conclusion: The study reveals a lack of knowledge and practice in family and emergency medicine physicians regarding ophthalmic chemical injuries, suggesting the need for guidelines and training to minimize complications and improve outcomes.

Key words: ocular injury, chemical, family physician, knowledge, ER physician, Saudi Arabia