Eye injuries associated with desk supplies presenting to United States emergency departments, 2005-2024

Desk supplies are a cause of accidental ocular injury, particularly among children. The objective of this study is to characterize the incidence, demographic patterns, injury characteristics, and temporal trends of desk supply-related eye injuries (DSEI) presenting to United States (U.S.) emergency departments from 2005 to 2024.

A cross-sectional analysis of data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) was conducted for cases involving ocular trauma (body part code 77) from pens and pencils (product code 1685) and other desk supplies (product code 1650). Patient demographics, injury location, product type, diagnosis and disposition were examined across age and product cohorts. All statistical analyses were conducted using R.

Over the 20-year study period, a total of 2764 cases were identified. This corresponds to a national estimate of 73,750 cases total, or approximately 3700 cases annually. Annual case counts declined over time (β = -5.44 cases/year; 95% CI, -6.81 to -4.07; p < 0.001). Children aged 5-11 years accounted for nearly half of all cases (49.2%), followed by children aged 0-4 years (20.3%) and adolescents aged 12-17 years (17.9%); adults comprised 12.6% of injuries. Most injuries were caused by pencils (62.9%) or pens (14.1%) and occurred at school (31.2%) or at home (27.5%).

DSEI are a frequent cause of emergency department visits. While injury incidence has declined in recent years, potentially due to classroom digitization, these findings highlight the need for improved prevention strategies and ongoing surveillance.