Knowledge and beliefs on corneal donation in Singapore adults.

AIM: To assess the knowledge and willingness of Singapore adults towards corneal donation. METHODS: The study population consists of a cluster random sample of the population living in Bedok North (an area in the eastern part of Singapore). The study population comprised residents aged 21-65 years living in 675 randomly sampled housing units. The participation rate was 65.9% (544/825). All participants were interviewed face to face with a questionnaire formulated according to the modified Horton and Horton model. Knowledge, values, attitudes, and spiritual beliefs of participants were assessed to evaluate their willingness to donate their corneas. RESULTS: 67.0% of participants were willing to donate their corneas. Ethnicity (Chinese) and religion (Christians, Hindus, or those with no religion) were associated with increased willingness to donate corneas. Greater knowledge and increased altruistic values were also associated with increased willingness to donate corneas. CONCLUSION: A proportion of participants were willing to donate their corneas. Awareness of corneal donation is high but specific knowledge should be further increased among adults.

Traumatic eye injuries due to large unusual foreign bodies: a Singapore case series.

PURPOSE: Traumatic eye injuries due to large foreign bodies (FB) are rare. The visual prognosis is often poor in these cases because of severe ocular damage. Staged surgical procedures with eventual enucleation or evisceration are often indicated. METHODS: Case series. RESULTS: The authors describe two patients with eye injury due to large FB with visual acuity of no light perception at presentation. Both had initial repair of the ocular injuries and removal of the FB. One patient with an intraocular FB eventually underwent enucleation; the other, with intraorbital FB, had evisceration as a secondary procedure. Orbital implantations were done in both. Neither of the patients had developed sympathetic ophthalmia at the last review. CONCLUSIONS: The visual outcome of eye injuries due to large FB is poor. Both enucleation and evisceration can be performed with low risk of sympathetic ophthalmia. Prevention remains the best approach to such devastating injuries.