This is Steve Carroll, and you're listening to the Em Basic podcast. Today we'll be talking

about eye complaints. This is something that we see a lot in the ED, so it's important that we get it right.

Today we'll talk about the major categories of eye complaints, how to diagnose them, and how to make

sure we don't miss the big things. This is a huge topic and will be a long podcast, so I can't cover

every eye condition, but we'll review the most common eye complaints and the ones that we can't miss.

One more thing, sorry for the long hiatus since the last episode. I've had a few projects come up

recently that have taken me away from the podcast by I'm back and ready for the new year.

Stay tuned in the next few weeks and months for more about these projects, but for now, I will be shooting for two episodes a month, one regular episode, and one episode of essential evidence.

So let's get started.

As always, this podcast doesn't represent the user opinions in the Department of Defense, the U.S. Army, or the Fort Hood Post Command. The first thing to do is to make sure to read the triage

note and check for the visual acuity. You can think of the visual acuity as the vital sign of

the eye. The visual acuity should be done when the patient is in the triage area. If the

visual acuity wasn't done already,

make sure to have someone do it or do it yourself.

A lot of ERs have visual acuity posters hung up on the wall at various places,

or you can use an iPhone app called the iChart.

This is a free app that's available on the iPhone App Store,

and I'm sure it's available for Android as well.

It's really easy to use and can help you do a visual acuity without leaving the patient's room.

All you do is open the app, hold it at the foot of the bed, and use it like a regular eye chart.

While it may not be as accurate as an exam in an optometrist's office, it will help you get a rough estimate of the patient's visual acuity, and, more importantly,

if there are any large differences in visual acuity between each eye. Even cooler, you can press

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