gms | German Medical Science

Background: Reports on open globe injuries by exploding bottles with carbonated drinks have already raised the demand to switch from multi use glass bottles to plastic bottles. In one case of a bilateral eye injury in a child the bottling plant has been condemmed for compensation. We retrospectively analyzed our cases to find out whether this type of injuries is limited to multiuse glas bottles and to what extend carelessness has contributed to the injury

Patients: Among 1402 open globe injuries that were treated at the departments of Ophthalmology at the universities of Freiburg and Wuerzburg between 1981 and 2004 we identified 33 injuries by exploding bottles with carbonated drinks. Cases were excluded from analysis, when the destruction of the bottle was intended (destructed with a hammer or bottle used as a weapon). The circumstances of the injury, the treatment and the functional outcome has been analyzed.

Results: 10 eyes suffered from a spontaneous explosion of the bottle when it was moved in a shelf or taken out of a box (10 injuries at work,10 multi use bottles und 5 single use bottles with sparkling wine). 16 eyes received the injury after the bottle had fallen down and exploded (6x in children 2 to 8 years). 5 bottles exploded during opening of the bottle. 4 the bottle cup went off spontaneously and penetrated the eye.

Conclusion: Spntaneous explosions in multi use glas bottles could easily be avoided by changing to plastic bottles, however, exploding single use glass bottles with sparkling wine contributed also to the injuries. In most cases carelessness was involved. Glass bottles should be never exposed to heat or shaking and children should never carry glas bottles with carbonated drinks.