Anterior eye health recording

Area of Science:

• Ophthalmology
• Optometry
• Clinical Practice

Background:

• Accurate recording of anterior eye health is crucial for patient management and research.
• Current practices for anterior eye health documentation vary among eye care practitioners globally.
• The need for standardized guidelines to improve consistency and quality of eye health records.

Purpose of the Study:

• To survey global eye care practitioners on their current methods for anterior eye health recording.
• To identify common practices, tools, and time allocation for anterior eye documentation.
• To inform the development of best practice guidelines for anterior eye health recording.

Main Methods:

• An online survey was distributed to eye care practitioners worldwide.
• The survey investigated the use of descriptive methods, sketching, grading scales, and photography.
• Practices regarding record-keeping (paper vs. computerised), proforma use, grading scale specifics, and time spent were examined.

Main Results:

• 809 practitioners completed the survey, revealing varied recording methods.
• Grading scales and descriptive methods were more frequently used for contact lens patients.
• Most practitioners (84.5%) used grading scales, with Efron and CCLRU/Brien-Holden-Vision-Institute scales being most popular. A median of 11 features were graded, most commonly bulbar hyperaemia.
• The average time for anterior eye health recording was 6.8 minutes.

Conclusions:

• Evidence supports the development of best practice guidelines for anterior eye health recording.
• Recommendations include consistently using and recording grading scales to one decimal place.
• Specific features like bulbar/limbal hyperaemia, neovascularisation, papillary changes, blepharitis, MGD, and staining should be routinely recorded.