As a result of heightened awareness that ophthalmologic examinations are essential for diagnosis and management of certain. systemic diseases, the number of patients referred to the department of ophthalmology by other specialists have increased. This paper presents a statistical analysis of the in-patients referred from other departments for ophthalmologic evaluations at the: Yonsei University Severance Hospital.
Among the total 9,350 in-patients of Severance Hospital excluding the admissions to the department of ophthalmology during the six month period from November of 1970 to April of 1971, 200 patients (2.1%%) were send for ophthalmologic consultations. They consisted of 127 (63.5 %) males and 73(36.5%) females, and the incidence was high at the fifth decade (40 patients, 20%) followed by in order of frequency forth, sixth, third, and second decades. The patients were referred most frequently by internists (91 patients, 45.5%) followed by psychiatrists, obstetrician, and neurologists, etc. in that order. The underlying diseases necessitated the ophthalmologic consultations were diseases of cardiovascular system (43 patients, 21.5%), and of nervous system, trauma, and toxemias of pregnancies, etc. Seventy-nine patients demonstrated no specific findings in the eyes, and 59 of the remaining 121 patients had retinal changes. Diseases of the lids, conjunctivae, refraction, and the lens followed. There were 51 patients with hypertensive retinopathy among the 59 patients with retinal changes.
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