Eye injuries from traditional sports in Aosta Valley

We reviewed the records of the patients hospitalised for eye injuries in Aosta Valley between January 1976 and June 1993. Eye injuries from traditional regional sports accounted for 27 cases (41.5% of all ocular sport injuries), of which 21 (77.8%) occurred during the game 'tsan', the most popular one. Injuries led to legal blindness in 3 (11.1%) cases and to a permanent visual loss in 2 (7.4%). Although our data do not allow to assess either a significantly higher incidence or severity of eye injuries from Aosta Valley regional games as compared with other sports, the possibility of severe trauma with visual loss suggests to extend the use of protection devices.