Fred Edmunds, OD, FAAO.

  
With the new school year underway and the fall sports season kicking into high gear, athletes of all ages are preparing to give their best on the field and maximize their performance. Keeping athletes safe and well-protected remains paramount, with eye safety at the top of the list. Similar to team sports, this task of protecting the eye health of athletes, whether amateur or professional, is a group effort, with optometrists playing a key role.

“First and foremost, (ODs can) recommend sports eyewear and/or contact lenses whenever appropriate. Secondly, we should be educating our patients, coaches and trainers on the importance of sports eye safety,” said Fred Edmunds, OD, FAAO, who runs a sports vision only practice devoted to the visual performance enhancement of athletes. In addition to his work with professional and collegiate teams, Dr. Edmunds provides custom programs for elite level youth and high school athletes. He is also a member of the board of directors of the International Sports Vision Association (ISVA) as well as a member of the AOA Sports & Performance Vision Committee. “Make sure they’re not playing aggressive, risky sports in street eyewear. Fit them in contact lenses for the many dynamic sports,” he advised.

New data released by Prevent Blindness in time for Sports Eye Safety Month this September shows there were more than 32,600 sports-related eye injuries treated in the U.S. in 2023.

According to Prevent Blindness, types of sports-related eye injuries include blunt trauma, such as retina tears or detachment, penetrating injuries, corneal scratches and abrasions. The new data also showed that the category of “pool and water sports” had the highest rate of eye injuries. For those ages 15 and older, basketball had the highest rate of injuries. Concussions are also common and can have lasting effects on an athlete's vision.

“Eye injury risk is strongly correlated with the type of sport. For example, sports that involve fast moving objects, such as a puck, baseball, softball or even a racquet, are more likely to cause eye injury than sports like cycling, golf, and track and field sports,” Dr. Edmunds said. “Additionally, sports that involve aggressive play in close quarters, such as basketball, boxing and martial arts, place the athlete at greater risk of ocular injury.”

 
 Paul Brewer, OD.
“The more common sports-related eye injuries are corneal abrasions, blunt trauma, penetrating injuries, fractures of the orbital bone, hyphema, commotio retinae, detached retina and concussions,” said Paul Brewer, OD, a neuro-optometric physician, researcher, weight training coach, and the founder of Diverge Performance Complex. “Sports-related eye injuries account for more than 42,000 emergency room visits in the U.S., with over 20,000 of those in the pediatric population. An estimated 3.8 million sports and recreation related concussions occur in the U.S. each year, with as many of half going unreported,” Dr. Brewer said.

He added, “Up to 69 percent of patients with concussion develop visual dysfunction, including eye movements. The reason why concussions can have such profound effects on the eyes and visual system, is that they directly affect how well your brain normally works. Typical visual symptoms that occur after a concussion are blurred vision, when the brain has difficulty focusing because of poor ocular motor control, and double-vision (diplopia), caused by an inability to align both eyes at once, resulting in overlapping or duplicate images.”

Keeping athletes from eye injuries means recommending the right protective gear for the right athlete. Prevent Blindness recommends that athletes wear eye guards when participating in sports as prescription glasses, sunglasses and even occupational safety glasses may not provide adequate protection.

“The most important, and perhaps easiest thing one can do to prevent sports eye injury is to use the appropriate protective eyewear,” said Dr. Edmunds. “And there currently are many suitable options to choose from. A critical consideration is to select protective eyewear based on sports application. ASTM standards have been developed to guide selection.”


Different sports offer different levels of injury risk, but no matter the sport, wearing the appropriate protective eyewear is a must to help reduce the chance of injury. Photo courtesy of ISVA
  
“ASTM F803 standards are the minimum needed to survive shots at racquetball or pickleball speeds,” Dr. Brewer added. “To reduce strain, there should be an ideal tight fit with no pressure points; adjustable straps can assist in making sure that the helmet sits securely. Select lenses that block 100 percent of UV rays for outdoor sports; anti-fog coating for ski goggles (for humid sports or high intensity pursuits), tints for enhanced contrast (e.g. skiing, climbing).”

Sports vision can also play a role in sports eye safety and performance, especially for the elite athlete.

“Elite level athletes are generally far less likely to suffer ocular injury than lesser level athletes playing the same sport. At the same time, the elite athlete’s visual skills are superior to lower-level athletes,” said Dr. Edmunds. “As such, as we improve an athlete’s visual skills; i.e. dynamic visual acuity, anticipation timing, peripheral awareness, eye-hand coordination, etc., their risk of ocular injury decreases.

“The relationship between sports vision and the risk of sustaining a sport-related eye injury is rather close, as optimal vision contributes both to an improved game-playing ability and offers protection,” added Dr. Brewer. “Athletes with exceptional skills in sports vision benefit from faster reaction time, increased peripheral vision and better depth perception, which results in better detection of threats and adaptation to changes involving moving objects or changing game dynamics. Increased visual attention to the surroundings around us decreases potential collisions or hits that could cause an injury in one of our eyes. Moreover, better sports vision can translate into improved eye-hand coordination, which enables individuals to effectively track a fast-moving object and make accurate movements accordingly.”

Optometrists play an important role in keeping athletes safe and performing at the highest level. Photo courtesy of ISVA

As athletes of all ages take the field this fall, what are the most important reminders for young athletes and parents of young athletes before the games begin?

“As an optometrist (OD), there are seven important tips for both young athletes and their parents to follow, in order to ensure sports eye safety which will lead to natural visual improvement,” said Dr. Brewer. “Most importantly, get regular eye exams to identify and correct any vision issues that could impact sports performance or raise injury risks. Wear sport-specific protective eyewear that meets the requirements of ASTM F803, especially if you play multiple sports and high-impact games. We recommend choosing polycarbonate or trivex lenses, famed for their robust and scratch-resistant nature as well as shatter-resistant material which provides superior impact protection to help keep you safe from flying objects that could potentially blind an eye or damage its surrounding tissues.

“It is vital to raise awareness about the dangers of sports-related eye injuries and their associated risk factors. Knowledge and understanding foster the practice of preventive steps. Utilizing vision training to improve visual skills such as eye-hand coordination, depth perception and peripheral awareness, in addition to protective eyewear, will not only enhance performance but decrease the chance of injury,” Dr. Brewer concluded.


The International Sports Vision Association (ISVA) urges parents, coaches, teachers, athletic trainers and athletes of all ages and skill levels to familiarize themselves with the potential for eye injuries in sports and recreational activities. Photo courtesy of ISVA


   
  Editor's Note

This is the second of a two-part series on Sports Eye Safety Month. Part one highlights the help and resources available this month from Prevent Blindness. Click here to read the story.