"Trauma to the Eye"-A Low Fidelity Resident Teaching Module for Identifying and Treating a Retrobulbar Hematoma

A retrobulbar hematoma (RH) is a serious time-dependent diagnosis due to its potential for permanent damage of the optic nerve, resulting in blindness. Emergency medicine (EM) physicians face the challenge of recognizing this time-sensitive injury and treating it before irreversible damage occurs. Due to its relative infrequency in the emergency department, residents may not have adequate experience in recognizing and treating RH.

This educational intervention outlined a simulated scenario that we developed to educate EM residents to diagnose RH and perform an emergent lateral canthotomy and cantholysis (LCC). Participating residents were asked to obtain a history and perform a physical examination that was consistent with a 34-year-old patient presenting with pushing behind the eye suggesting RH. Once residents made a diagnosis, they practiced performing an emergent LCC on a low-fidelity task trainer supplemented with a novel checklist. The residents completed an assessment questionnaire before and after the teaching module to measure the educational intervention's effectiveness.

Learners' scores significantly improved in the ability to recognize and treat RH (12%, p < .001), in confidence in performing the procedure (18%, p < .001), but did not significantly decrease in stress (-10%, p = .058). The intervention was effective in improving preparedness, with all participants indicating that they felt more prepared to treat RH compared to before the educational intervention.

This educational intervention is a successful resource that can decrease cases of preventable blindness by improving EM residents' ability to recognize and treat RHs.