SUMMARY
1.171 patients with eye m1uries admitted to "Santa Casa de Misericórdia de São Paulo" Central Hospital were examined, from March 5 to August 30, 1992 to determine the incidence, aetiology and severity of ocular injuries. Most patients were between 16 and 45 years old (68,7%) and the male-female ratio was 4: 1. Of the total cases, 38,7% ocurred at work, 33,7% during domestic activities, 8, 6% were caused by assault, 4,3% were involved in a motor vehicle crash or were hit by a vehicle, 1,5% at sport activities, 1,2% had their injuries caused by animals and 12% were not classified. Children under 15 accounted for 17,6% of the total admitted, mainly distributed in the domestic and animal injury groups. Outlining strategies for eye injury prevention would substantially reduce their incidence and are further depicted in this paper.