key: cord-0973997-p2wm8b3c
authors: Shams, Fatemeh; El-Abiary, Mariam; Goudie, Colin; Yorston, David
title: Effects of lockdown on retinal detachment incidence in Scotland
date: 2020-06-17
journal: Eye (Lond)
DOI: 10.1038/s41433-020-1029-3
sha: 90a44aae84d80030ae9d3ca14c34d8d9c7a18e51
doc_id: 973997
cord_uid: p2wm8b3c

nan

We averaged the total number of RRDs in four 5-week periods (excluding Christmas and New Year) leading up to 25 th March and compared this to the 5 weeks from 25 th March to 29 th April ( Table 1 ). The weekly mean RRDs reduced from 18.2 before lockdown, to 8.6 after lockdown, resulting in a drop in the annual incidence from 17.37/ 100,000/year to 8.21 (CI 7.8-10.5, p < 0.0001). There has also been a decrease in the proportion of RRDs that are macula on at presentation from 44.2% to 34.9% (Table 1) .

Extrapolating this data to the UK population, we estimate that the weekly number of detachments has declined from 222 to 105, suggesting that 117 RRDs are going untreated for every week of lockdown.

There has been a substantial reduction in the number of people presenting with retinal detachment in Scotland, following the lockdown. This may be due to a fear of attending hospital owing to the perceived risk of coronavirus infection, the lack of an accessible referral route with closure of high street optometrists, or a misunderstanding of the "Stay at Home" advice. It is very unlikely that the incidence of retinal detachment has declined (Table 2) .

Although the reduction reported by Wickham et al. [1] was not as steep, we agree with them that we should plan for a surge in untreated and complex conditions as the lockdown is eased.

As prompt treatment is essential for a good outcome, when these patients do attend, the delay will lead to significantly worse functional outcomes. This represents another example of the hidden harms of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The impact of COVID policies on acute ophthalmology services-experiences from Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Blind and partial sight registration in Avon

The epidemiology and socioeconomic associations of retinal detachment in Scotland: a two-year prospective population-based study by the Scottish RD Study Group